The House Of Hades
by Lycii TyS
Summary: "Join us..." heaved the thin raspy voice, echoes bouncing off the walls. "Join us or perish!" Shutting his eyes, Leo yelled,"No! I will not submit!" Ghostly cracks snaked down the marble floor, the crevice growing wider. He was the seventh and the last, Leo had to remain strong. The lives of his friends were in his hands now...
1. Chapter I

**I spaced this out so it wouldn't kill the new readers who are reading this from Chapter One. I hope it's better now. :)**

**Disclaimer****I chatted with Mr. D and he told me that I wasn't Rick and I did not own him or PJO and HOO unfortunately..**

**Nico**

**All the gloomy things happening at once were definitely not good for himself and his health. **First it was Gaia's minions capturing him, and then next was Percy and Annabeth.

Sure he had gotten rescued in time before he died, but now death seemed like a nice option. "The other side, Nico! We'll see you there. Understand? Promise me."

Those were Percy's last words to him before he plunged into eternal hell with Annabeth. Nico knew what Percy would face in the depths of Tartarus; he'd already been inside once.

He knew Percy was the strongest demigod he'd ever met, even compared to Jason. Sure, he was the son of Jupiter and all, but still Percy was the kind of person you knew you could rely on comfortably.

Jason was more Roman; he acted a little too perfect for everything, following all the rules. Thalia Grace's younger brother? That seemed weird.

From what the others told him, he'd gathered that Thalia was separated from her brother when Jason was about two.

While Thalia had run away from her home, Jason had instead been sent to the Roman camp. Comparing Thalia and Jason, the most obvious difference was that Jason followed rules and Thalia broke them.

After the battle with Kronos, Nico had grown closer to both Percy and Thalia, like they were his own siblings. The word 'sibling' still hurt as it would always trigger the memory of his dead sister, Bianca Di Angelo.

She'd died trying to save Percy, trying make right the wrong she'd done. The _myth-o-magic_ statue of Hades was always in his pocket, it always reminded him of his sister, like a bit of her was in the statue, guiding and protecting him.

Recently, after he'd learned that the Doors of Death had opened, he had journeyed to the Underworld, trying to bring his sister back to life.

But, when he got there, he found that his only sibling had moved on, to a new life. He was distraught on learning that. Nico had staggered out of Elysium, barely managing to control his grief for he would never see his sister again.

As he was passing through the Fields Of Asphodel, something attracted him. He'd just followed along the trail which led him to a girl with golden eyes.

He immediately knew that she would be a child of Hades for her eyes shown with memories, unlike the other dead souls. _I lost a sister, and then I find another one, _he thought.

"So Nico, welcome back to the world of the living!" a boy in a T-shirt that read _AM LEO_ said, making a feeble attempt at a joke trying to boost the morale of the group.

Hazel just stared glumly at him and asked him to shut up and start working on the Archimedes sphere. Jason just gave him a suspicious look and introduced the demigods onboard.

"That's Piper, daughter of Aphrodite, the girl beside me, and that's Leo who is steering the ship, son of Hephaestus. Oh and he can control fire. The guy standing in front of Hazel, he's Frank, son of Mars; um… that's Ares to you."

"So what do we do now?" Frank said dejectedly, he possibly was a good friend of Percy back at the Roman camp, Nico saw him hanging around Hazel and Percy a lot before he left for the Underworld.

"We should sail to Greece and find Epirus, that was what Percy had said before and we also should upgrade the Argo II. We need more powerful weapons.

I plan on installing the Archimedes sphere into the ship, I have already read the plan and I think I can do it. If it's powerful enough to even kill the strongest eidolons sent by Gaia, I think it would help us defend the Argo II really well.

That way I think we'll be able to stand a chance against Gaia's armies." Leo said, rummaging in his tool belt bringing out an assortment of screws and nuts.

"What about the Romans?" Hazel asked skeptically, her golden eyes shining with fear. "We all know the strength of the Roman legion; see what they did when they caught up to us?

It was a lucky thing with Jason and Percy around, we had barely escaped and we also can't leave Camp Half-Blood to be at the mercy of Octavian.

I know Reyna, she'll gladly settle it with the Greeks by just discussing first about the attack on New Rome for she knew that we didn't do it on purpose, she'll see sense, and she even spared Annabeth's life.

However, if she tries to stop Octavian, he'll take the chance and try to seize power. The Romans have their pride and they would probably listen to Octavian and go into battle with the Greeks. Then, we won't even have anyone who could help us."

"I don't know," Jason said. "Maybe we should return the _Athena Parthenos_ to the Greeks?"

"But, if the Greeks ever knew about what happened, they'll never forgive the Romans for their treachery." Nico replied, fiddling with his skull ring, causing a skeletal mouse to appear.

"What's more, I think we need to return to Camp Half-Blood either way. We need materials to build that Archimedes sphere and we are low on celestial bronze, if I'm not wrong.

Also we have to warn them about the Romans. We might be able to stop the battle. If we can get the Romans on our side, we'd win this battle with Gaia more easily."

"I agree with you, Nico. I think we should set sail back to Camp Half-Blood, it's the best solution. Also they have the right to know about Percy and Annabeth." Piper said, brushing back her hair.

"So its decided then, we go back to Camp Half-Blood," Leo said as he pressed a few buttons on his Wii remote. Suddenly, a cold feeling settled across Nico. The others must have felt it too as Hazel tensed.

"_Soon my dear demigods, you will face my first challenge, so treacherous that even the strongest of you cannot pass." _A slow and sleepy voice settled across the Argo II.

For that moment, nothing could be heard except for the whirring of the mechanism of the ship. Suddenly, the ship lurched, knocking the still weak Nico off his feet.

Suddenly, he heard a loud hiss, and he felt the warmth from a fire licking at his knees, slowly getting warmer and warmer until it was unbearable.

He staggered upwards, struggling to gain his balance, his vision was becoming blurry. There was only one thing he could make out: Jason calling down lightning to strike something.

When the lightning hit, the air lit up briefly and what he saw was horrendous. Nine acid-spitting heads were staring back at them, its eyes cold and dark with hatred.

**Like it? Don't Like it? Review please! Ideas are taken. :)**


	2. Chapter II

***Edited Version, newly released with word spacing!***

**Disclaimer: I know I'm a bored freak, but I don't own PJO or HOO, sadly Rick Riordan does…**

**Nico**

**What?!** He'd thought to himself when his vision had finally cleared. How could this creature even be able to attack the warship? It was loaded with explosive and weapons!

Apparently, Leo had been thinking along the same lines as he was. The look on his face was priceless.

If there had not been the threat of imminent death looming over them, he might've laughed, but right now he just felt that his stomach was trying to throw itself up.

He'd heard before at camp that Percy had faced a hydra like this when he was 13, if he could reason with the Fates, Nico would've told them, "Hey! I'm only 12!" Life isn't fair, he knew.

His sister was taken away, he'd almost died, and now his close friend was also taken away. This thought was fuelled by intense hate for Gaia which suddenly gave him strength.

He raised his pure black sword and hurled with all his might at the hydra. He hoped his plan would work.

Around him, he could see his friends, all of them fighting hard to keep the hydra at bay, even when some of them had already sustained serious injuries.

Leo was hurling fireballs at the hydra, Jason was summoning bolts of lightning, Piper was trying to talk to the hydra, while Frank turned into a dragon with much effort and was circling around it.

Despite all their efforts and powers combined, Nico knew they weren't going to win. He could see Jason was exhausted, Leo had sweat on his forehead and whenever the hydra got hit with fire, it just dipped back into the ocean to escape then come back again.

Apparently it was a sea monster. No one had dared to try and cut off its heads as everyone was afraid of more hydra heads sprouting.

As Nico watched his sword come into contact with the hydra, he could feel its essence leaving its body, all is power being sucked into his sword and its spirit returning to Tartarus where it would stay for a long time even with the Doors of Death opened.

His sword was thrown backwards with the impact and landed a few feet away from him. It glistened in the sunlight. _Just another perk for the son of the death god_, he thought cynically.

The hydra had disintegrated, crumbling into dust and dissolving in the air. Jason, exhausted, nodded his head at him showing his approval.

Even though they had just defeated a hydra, something was still nagging at the back of his mind.

He felt that something was not right, why would Gaia say that the challenge would be almost impossible to get by, when the hydra could be killed with his sword only? Something fishy was going on.

Suddenly, a metallic twang was heard followed by the sound of a dog barking. The bark then turned into a ferocious growl as it neared where Nico was standing.

Hazel appeared, holding her_ spatha_ in front of her, as if warding off what was pursuing her. She was out of breath, panting heavily as she struggled to balance herself.

At that moment, a series of ferocious barks was heard again and a bloodhound appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

It bared its razor sharp teeth and approached Nico and Hazel. It seemed interested in them only as it ignored the others on board.

Hazel screamed, "Duck!' as she whacked the bloodhound with her _spatha,_ causing the same metal sound Nico heard earlier to resonate through the entire deck of the ship.

"Mars almighty," Frank said. "That's no ordinary bloodhound, that's the Laelaps!" The bloodhound turned upon hearing its name. It snarled at Frank causing him to back away uncertainly.

"What?!" Hazel yelped as she stared at the bloodhound.

Nico said, "Why isn't it attacking? I've read before in myths that the Laelaps was a magical dog that was destined to always catch its prey right?

In the myths, it said that it was first given to Europa of Krete by Zeus, and was later handed down through King Minos, to Prokris and Kephalos of Athens.

King Minos, that creep. I didn't get on with him before, the traitor just used me. He would probably come for me in revenge now, he was a vengeful soul.

Now as Gaia has opened the Doors of Death, she'd lead the strongest and most villainous monsters and demons and whatever else back into the world of the living."

"But if so, it could have torn you to pieces now, why did it not? It's just standing there watching you." Hazel replied nervously, her hands still clamped around her _spatha_.

Jason said, "Whatever it is, it's there for a reason and also didn't Zeus turn it and the fox it was pursuing into stone? Why is it alive now?

Has it had something to do with the Doors Of Death and finding Percy and Annabeth?"

Nico tensed when he heard both their names, it reminded him of bad memories.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "I think we should keep it first and I also agree with what Jason said, it came here for a reason.

It probably thought Hazel was the enemy that's why it chased her. Hopefully, it will help us on quest and not turn out to be a traitor…"

**No one is perfect, I'd love to know my flaws and work on them. So, Review please, the button down there means the world to me! I hoped you liked it.**


	3. Chapter III

***You are currently reading the newly edited-spaced out version catered especially for you and your comfort reading***

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy, Annabeth, Leo or anybody else in PJO and HOO, Rick Riordan does, so hurray for him!**

**Annabeth**

**All Annabeth felt was that she was falling, falling , falling.** It was as if she was on a massive never-ending rollercoaster ride, with lots of unexpected twists and turns, with horrors from the great unknown.

Around her wrist, she could feel Percy's tight knuckled grip on her. She could barely make out his face, but she knew he was straining under the effort of keeping them both together.

Like what Nico had said, the feeling of being in Tartarus was almost unbearable to the utmost point. The pit had seemingly sucked her in and was trying to separate her from Percy.

She could feel the tension of the pulling force of the pit trying to draw her away from Percy. Annabeth didn't know how to explain that feeling, it was just _there. Like some evil magnet. _

Gods, that sounded hilarious in such a dire situation. That thought just made her imagine that Tartarus, the spirit of the abyss, was a giant horseshoe magnet, separating all kinds of forces from each other, making that individual more helpless and less of a threat.

The thought had seemingly lifted her spirits lightly as she imagined some sort of cartoon magnet with cute eyes in it drawing(_attracting?)_the evil looking dude(s) away from each other. But now wasn't the time for her to be separated, she couldn't leave Percy now.

After he willingly jumped into Tartarus with her just to stay with her was just too good of him. She would have given her life just to save Percy and now she knew Percy would do the same for her.

Being down here in Tartarus was just as good as death, for they didn't know what uncharted dangers lay ahead. Even Nico as the son of the death god had found it so unbearable he'd almost lost his sanity.

_Now isn't the time for this, you have to focus and keep calm, it's Gaia that is messing with your head. You are a child of a Athena, one which has accomplished a task no one else could, you can do this._

Annabeth told herself this while she squeezed Percy's hand reassuringly, or at least tried to. She could feel the force of the spirit of Tartarus getting stronger the more she tried to fight.

She cringed when she felt a sharp pain flare up in her ankle. She was so worried about the Percy that she'd almost forgot it. Almost. She'd slammed into the dusty marble tiled surface of the floor.

_Did Tartarus even have a floor? The myths said it was a never ending pit for the evil._ She thought as she struggled to stand. Her ankle could not seem to bear her weight.

After a few more futile attempts, she gave up and slumped onto the floor next to Percy, who was knocked unconscious. Her breathing was getting faster, much more rapid than before.

She could literally feel her pulse drumming in her wrist. Annabeth was never claustrophobic, but this place seemed like an enclosed area and she struggled to even breathe.

Suddenly, she saw a light flicker on and off at the farthest corner of the room. She was starting to freak out. Her forehead was beaded in cold sweat and her hands turned clammy.

The light seemed to be getting closer with every second which was impossible. Lights don't move. Suddenly, she could feel the light flooding her face and she could see clearly again.

The owner of the lamp was none other than_ Nico_? She thought to herself: but that can't be him, Percy had rescued him already, why would be in Tartarus of all places?

The Nico in Tartarus said, "Come with me Annabeth, I will show you the way out from here, after all I am the ghost king, no ghost from the Underworld can stop me. Besides this is just the Labyrinth, I can navigate this place as easily as Theseus did even without Adrianne's string."

"What?" Annabeth said disbelievingly. "We are not in the Labyrinth, we got out of there some time ago, we are in Tartarus now."

The Nico in Tartarus replied her, in a strange and raspy voice that did not sound like him. "Ah two demigods in Tartarus, you must have done something bad to be thrown into here.

I take the form of whoever in your memory you feel indebted to, you must have done something to make you feel that guilty. But never fear, I will help this world by devouring you for I am Mormo, a spirit and the companion of Hecate.

I always did this world service, didn't you read the myths child? I always bite the bad children who cause trouble, Zeus has banished me down here because I was once unstoppable when I went round biting children.

But no matter, I will have my revenge by devouring the two of you oh yes. I know you are vital in this quest to stop Gaia from rising, but for me, let Gaia rise.

It's not like the gods have done me any good, they just threw me down here and locked me away. Even Hecate didn't lift a finger to help me." There was something in his(its?) voice that bothered Annabeth, Mormo didn't sound like it was just going to bite them, it made it sound like he was going to eat them whole.

Sensing Annabeth's discomfort, Mormo laughed, relishing the moment. "You are in my territory now, there is no escape. But, it's a shame to just _eat _you and let all your sufferings end, oh no, I will make this torture for you and that demigod until your very last breath. Its only fair after what Zeus did to me is it not?"

Annabeth was right, it had wanted to eat her. "Hold on a second," she said, as her mind whirled around like a whirlpool, struggling for any information that might help her. "You work for Gaia right? I mean Gaia is your patron right?"

"Yes." Mormo replied with distaste. "But even so, you cannot stop me!"

Annabeth quickly replied, "But during our quests, many of Gaia's _minions_ have told us that Gaia had particularly wanted us to be killed before her as she rose. If you ate us now, wouldn't you not be acting according her orders?"

"I am no minion nor servant of anyone. I serve nobody!" Mormo replied. "Since Hecate didn't help me when I was in trouble, I'd learned during my time here that having a master was as good as being treated like a slave. _Companion of Hecate_. What rubbish indeed. That title was only given to me as a so-called consolation price of being sent down here for the rest of eternity. I serve no one I tell you!"

By this time Percy had already started to rouse. "What.." he said drowsily. Annabeth had quickly shushed him. The reaction that Mormo was giving was exactly what she'd wanted.

"I guess you are correct then Mormo, if Gaia truly cared for you, she would've brought you back into the world of the living would she not? Maybe she's just using you as a pawn, just like us. If you kill us now, Gaia's chances of success would be even higher. If you spare our life, we could still have a chance to defeat Gaia and we could get an amnesty from Zeus for you. Isn't it a win win situation?"

Mormo said, "Come to think of it, it is a good idea. I'll think about it." After saying this she turned her back on Annabeth and started muttering to himself(itself?). Annabeth steeled herself for the inevitable.

She knew she had to do it if she wanted Percy and her to live. Gripping her celestial bronze knife tightly in her hand, she advanced slowly to the spirit. "Sorry Nico!" she yelled as she plunged her knife into the abdomen of the spirit.

Mormo stared at her with bloodshot eyes. If looks could kill, she would've been dead a long time ago. "Trickery, demigod. You may have banished me for now, but I will be back soon.

Even if Gaia doesn't bring me back up into the world of the living, I will be back soon to haunt you." She said, almost bloodthirstily. The side of its abdomen which was supposedly hurt was healing rapidly.

_Could spirits die in Tartarus, since the essence of them will return to Tartarus whenever killed. _Annabeth didn't have time to ponder over this as Mormo was slowly but surely starting to reform.

It might be hurt, but it was still strong enough to pursue them. Grabbing Percy's hand, she helped him to stand. "Run!" she said before she heard that spine-chilling scream.

As they ran to the farthest corner of the room, the wall slid open for them revealing a narrow passageway. They could hear Mormo cackling behind them as it drew closer and closer to them.

With no other choice, Annabeth dragged Percy into the passageway with her. The wall slid back silently behind her closing all ways of returning back to the room. She could no longer hear Mormo, but instead was faced with an unearthly silence.

Finally Percy spoke, "It seems like we are back in the Labyrinth again."

**Tada! Now R&R please, it would really make my day! Now that I actually write, I have realised thy power of thou art's review button!**

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	4. Chapter IV

***You are reading the EPIC-LY latest edition of the fourth chapter, which includes an in-flight sentence spacing for your viewing pleasure, courtesy of the captain, Leo Valdez***

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO nor HOO, now read my story! :D**

**Hazel**

**Hazel was still suspicious of the Laelaps or the dog. **She was just going to call it 'the dog' for Laelaps was just too difficult to pronounce. She was still wary of it being a 1940s girl, why would a bloodhound suddenly be found on the ship for no clear reason?

Hazel didn't think Leo would've brought a bloodhound on the ship. They didn't need a watch dog. Coach Hedge was good enough as one. Hazel would never tell Coach Hedge in the face, but she found him rather intimidating.

Though not as intimidating as her third grade teacher Mrs Leer. She was the most unreasonable person she'd met in her life. Well, her past life that is. Hazel had met more unreasonable people in this life than in the past.

Leo was running all around the ship trying to repair the damaged bits of it as quickly as possible. Leo panted, as he worked, saying, "We never know when another attack may come since Gaia seems bent on stopping us."

"Finally, Leo," Jason said. "You did and said something smart."

Leo stopped his work, and stared at Jason intently and replied indignantly, "Hey! I have said and done something smart before and I suggest you guys get down and help me too so we can repair the damage more quickly instead of you lounging on the deck leaving the work for me to do. None of you are injured badly anyway. Also where's Coach Hedge?"

"Hiya!" Coach Hedge yelled, doing a karate chop move. He had black duct tape taped in a circle around his furry hindquarters like a karate champion's black belt. He was wearing a white tie dyed top along with the duct tape looking like he came from the junk shop.

"DIE! You monster!" He yelled, prancing around the ship waving his wooden club around like a pirate on steroids. Leo rolled his eyes at the satyr and threw a screw at him. "Hey!" Coach Hedge said apparently annoyed at being disturbed from his victory dance.

Piper got up suddenly. Her face was pale and she suddenly spoke, "I don't feel so well, I keep feeling like something is following me and watching my each and every move.

I didn't feel like this before until the time which the eidolons entered the ship and erm 'possessed' Percy, Leo and Jason." This was coming from a child of Aphrodite and with the added doom and gloom in her words, probably because of her charmspeak, the air which hung across the deck of the Argo II felt really scary.

There was an eerie silence penetrating the air, Hazel never heard silence this loud before. Suddenly, she heard a loud CLANG! Hazel had nearly jumped out of her skin and even Jason had appeared startled.

"Sorry guys, I dropped something." Leo had said sheepishly before he turned back to his work. But in a split second before that, his and Hazel's eyes had met.

They'd lingered for a moment too long. Frank had noticed it and was trying to get Hazel's attention. Hazel was sick of this triangle. Leo might've been Sammy's great grandson, but still Frank was her boyfriend.

But Leo's character had reminded her of Sammy, in her past life. He was just as sweet and as impish as he was, which was why Hazel likes Sammy for in the first place._ Enough. _Hazel told herself. _You have more important things to worry about now._ She could feel Frank's eyes on her even with her back facing him. Forget the creepy feeling Piper had felt, this was far worse.

Hazel had quickly excused herself, and ran to her room. She slumped down onto her bed and lay there staring up at the ceiling. Suddenly, she felt a cold feeling, exactly like what Piper had mentioned.

Now that she was away from Frank and Leo's attention zone, she felt really creeped out. She could feel invisible pins and needles inserting themselves into her legs, numbing them, making them hard to move.

Hazel started to think. Why did Gaia say that the challenge she was going to give them would be almost impossible to face? They had barely beaten the hydra even with Nico's help, but Hazel still didn't feel right.

Something was wrong, even with the coming of the Laelaps too. No mythical dog would just appear on a ship for no reason. Something had to be wrong. She knew some of the others felt the same way, but they were too afraid to voice it with the dog around, wandering the ship.

She had felt confined and vulnerable like she was in a prison, even with all her friends around her. It was and unearthly force controlling the dog, she could feel it in her gut.

Suddenly, she heard a thud on her bedroom door, then after a few seconds, two more thuds were heard. With a slow groan, the door creaked open revealing the Laelaps standing by the door frame.

It seemed to want Hazel to follow her. Hazel could feel her muscles in her body unwilling chase after the dog while every thought in her brain screamed RUN!(away from the dog of course)

It felt like something was controlling her and she had no choice but to oblige. The bloodhound had led her to the stable for the pegasi, the one with the glass bottom. Once inside, the Laelaps closed the door with its hind foot. Hazel didn't think any dog could do that mythical or not. Suddenly, its eyes glowed golden and it began to transform.

A vaguely humanoid shape started to form out of the shape of the Laelaps, the body of the dog elongated and the head became rounded. The process was indeed just to horrible to watch.

Once the transformation was complete, a man stepped out. He and Nico shared one similar trait, there seemed to be shadows following him around wherever he stepped.

"Finally," the man said. "I am free. I have risen from the Underworld that your father built up ever so strongly and now with Gaia aiding me, I shall finally get my revenge on his pstart son, Nico Di Angelo.

He thwarted my plans in coming back once, but he cannot prevent me forever. For I am King Minos! Since you are here already, I will settle for the daughter of Pluto for my first kill. You are weak, and you cannot stop me!"

Hazel made a quick note in her head. King Minos, wants to kill Nico, but would gladly start with me first equals very bad. Hazel didn't have her _spatha_ with her so she was utterly powerless.

Unless… Her eyes fell onto the glass bottom of the stables. She knew she could open it for Leo had used celestial bronze to make it and precious stones and metals was her specialty.

But how to prevent herself from falling splat into the ground so many miles below? Suddenly, something clicked in her head. She whistled loudly. King Minos looked distastefully at her, saying, "What was that supposed to do, blow my eardrums to pieces? I don't even think your friends could hear you, this place is too near the engine, it would probably drone out your shouts and whistles what not."

King Minos stared at her, a cruel smile playing on his lips, "Now are you ready to die?"

"Not likely," Hazel replied with equal verve. "But are you?" With this, she willed the metal lock holding the floor together to unlock and she plunged both of them tumbling into the vast sky. "You may have saved your friends from me, but you will still die with me. However, unlike me, you will not return to this world!" King Minos said.

At this moment, Arion came swooping down, with a pair of metal wings attached to its back? Must be one of Leo's inventions. Arion caught Hazel neatly in the air and flew at top speed back towards to Argo II. Hazel looked back once, and saw King Minos giving her a look of loathing before he disappeared in the sky. Amazingly, thanks to Leo's invention, Arion could now fly. The bronze wings worked perfectly, and Hazel could also control them with her power.

When Arion landed Hazel at the deck of the ship where everyone was at, she received a few looks of pure shock from her friends. "Explain later," she panted, trying to recover from the speed at which Arion was flying. "But get Leo to build an anti-ghost shield around the ship now!"

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	5. Chapter V

***You are currently reading the new deluxe version of Chapter 5, it has been stamped by Hermes and proved by Zeus for your ultimate viewing pleasure, lines have now been spaced, enjoy!***

**Disclaimer: I know I still don't own this, but for safety's sake, I'm going to say it anyway, I don't own PJO or HOO, Rick Riordan does!**

**Hazel**

**Once she had landed back on the Argo II, everyone had looked at her weirdly. **Of course they would have, she had arrived on the deck of the warship looking rather crazed, and Arion with those bronze wings and the totally pissed off kind of look didn't help matters.

"What happened?" Jason asked full of concern. Hazel had cut him off and requested that she see Leo immediately. She could feel Frank's disapproving look on her, but she ignored it anyway.

It was about the safety of seven of them now, not just her, herself. Leo came up to her, his hair slick from too much time fiddling with machine grease. "Yes?" he said rather shyly.

Hazel thought that he probably remembered the incident a few days ago, when they went into their past. Hazel tried to push aside her own personal feelings, and in a more urgent tone, she told him what she wanted him to do.

"What?!" Leo said incredulously. "I have never heard of an anti-ghost smokescreen."

Hazel replied, "So you can't do it then?"

"I didn't say I couldn't. I think I could design something to ward off unwanted spirits from the ship, like a kind of mosquito repellant for ghosts."

"Well, then? Get started on it, I don't want our lives being at stake because of vengeful ghosts from the past, we have more important things to deal with." Hazel said, looking at her brother with concern.

"Nico, I want to talk to you, in private." Hazel whispered in her brother's ear before leaving the deck of the ship. "Whaaat?" Nico replied in confusion, but Hazel was already gone.

"Live with it little cousin, once you're old enough, you'll understand sometimes how much a pain a girl can be." Jason said smoothly, with Frank nodding his head with agreement.

Frank, was also pissed at Hazel for not relating what happened with her journey on Arion. On hearing this, Piper elbowed Jason in the ribs causing him to wince. Lay off Hazel," she said. "She just lost her good friend. Like Nico, she knew Percy a lot more than we do, like we know about Annabeth." Jason held up his hands in surrender.

As Hazel waited in her room for her brother, she felt that cold feeling again. She looked around the room in terror, eyeing everything suspiciously like it could be a spy.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and she almost jumped out of her skin in fright. After her previous encounter with the Laelaps/King Minos, she wasn't that keen on opening doors for people to come in.

A second later, only after realizing that it would probably be her brother looking for her, she then opened the door. Outside indeed, stood Nico. He entered the room and flopped down onto the floor and look at her with his tired eyes.

After the battle with the hydra, he had not even rested much. Hazel knew that over usage of their powers would lead to mass exhaustion, sometimes it would cause the person to be very hungry, or pass out from lack of rest.

"So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about?" Nico said bleary eyed.

"I need to ask you a question and tell me honestly, what did you do to make 'King Minos' so angry with you?" Hazel asked, raising her eyebrows questioningly.

Nico opened his mouth to argue, then closed it when he saw the hard set expression on his sister's face. Nico then said, "You know you look a lot like Annabeth when you are determined to do something."

Hazel flushed when she heard it, being even somewhat like Annabeth was the best compliment anyone could give her.

"Anyway, Nico. Tell me about your history with King Minos, then I'll tell you what happened just now." Hazel said.

Nico then replied with a cheeky grin, "Wow sis, you sure know how to make a bargain. Anyway it was a few years back, Percy, Annabeth, Rachel and me were in the Labyrinth. I'll tell you who Rachel is later. So anyway, ….."

After Hazel had exchanged her story with her brother, both of them sat down glumly in silence, thinking of what horrors awaited the two living children of Hades/Pluto.

Though one was Greek, the other Roman, their bond together was strong. Suddenly, the intercom of Hazel's room blasted out Leo's voice. It said, "Hello everyone on board the Argo II, this is your captain speaking.

I am pleased to inform you that the weather is pleasant today and that I have built a so called anti-ghost repellant like Hazel suggested. It gives off a radioactive wave that will ward off spirits of the Underworld unless summoned.

Also Festus has reported to me that we will reach Camp Half-Blood in approximately two hours so cool your jetpacks people, we are about to return home! Well, for the Greeks anyway. This is the end of my announcement, peace out!"

Balling up his fists tightly, Nico said softly, "I'm finally going home, but this time, it won't be good..."

**I have unfortunately contracted a bout of WB(Writer's Block), thus I apologise for the short chapter, it may not be as action-packed, but what else is coming next will definitely be more exciting, so stay tuned! ;D**

**(::) Eat your cookies! (::)**

**~O~ Eat your sweets too! ~O~**


	6. Chapter VI

_**I feel weird, I suddenly remember Percy saying he visualized Apollo wearing bell bottoms in The Last Olympian. I think he was singing Staying Alive and I'm listening to the song right now like I'm some 60's kid, I'm not though. Okay, that's just random. Some of the characters might be a little OOC, so sorry for that. Disclaimer: I do not owner PJO or HOO in anyway, it belongs to Rick Riordan(NOOOOOO!Whyyyyy?) Okay, just enjoy the story. **___

**Annabeth**

After the door had slid shut behind her, Annabeth started to hyperventilate. She felt vaguely self-conscious. She could also feel Percy breathing heavily behind her. "Where are we now? This place seems familiar." Percy asked nervously.

"I don't know," Annabeth replied, her brow creasing. "but it won't be a good thing. Mormo kind of gave it away when she was talking to me. All our deepest fears will come out to haunt us in this place, also when it first appeared to me, it took the form of Nico, saying he would lead us out of Labyrinth. So, I guess this is a replica of the Labyrinth? I think so.."

Annabeth hated not knowing anything. She felt weak and vulnerable to things that might attack her, knowledge was her strongest weapon and she wasn't prepared to lose it anytime. Percy patted her hand reassuringly, but even that did not make her feel any better.

"I think we should walk, we can't stay here. We'll be in no position to defend ourselves here, and it's a dead end, we can't run away if the need comes to it." Percy said sensibly. Annabeth nodded her head in agreement. She wasn't thinking straight and she knew it, she could feel like an important part of her was missing. Annabeth lead the way as she walked, holding her bronze knife out in front of her, as if warding off monsters that might be lurking near. Once, she had accidently walked in to a cobweb and had probably screamed the place down. After her encounter with Arachne, she was in no mood to face another spider again. Annabeth took a deep breath and told herself. I can do this, I have already been in the Labyrinth once before, if I could get through it last time, I can go through it again. The passageway was getting more and more narrow as they walked and the stones used to build them were getting more and more ancient with every step. Annabeth knew with one look that the foundation of this part of the Labyrinth was not strong, it could collapse any moment. Finally, they reached a crossroad. There were two passaways there. One led to an even older part of the Labyrinth, with more crumbling walls, it was even worse than the one she was in. The other passageway seemed much better, it led to a big room with high ceilings. Suddenly, she heard a low growl behind her. She tensed and she could feel Percy do that too. Percy whispered in a low voice, "The big room, now. Something is following us!" Nodding her head, she dragged Percy into the big room with her. Inside the big and airy room, the growling they both heard stopped. Inside, she saw a pool of water on the floor and a fruit tree. The fruits were hanging downwards almost as if whoever standing in that position could reach up and just pluck the fruit off the trees to eat. Annabeth felt thirsty and hungry at the same time. They had no water and no food, just their weapons and Percy's bag of ambrosia which were in his pocket at all times.

Annabeth's thirst and hunger had already overwhelmed her. So many things had happened during this day, Annabeth almost couldn't take it anymore, she just wanted to sit down, relax and forget about all this. Something was nagging at her at the back of her head, something about the pool and the tree she should have remembered, but she couldn't put her finger on what. She walked across the room to reach the pool and the tree. When she bent down to drink from it, the water in the pool shrank away from her like it was enchanted with magic. _Enchanted._ Then it struck her, the pool, the water and the tree, it all made sense, the problem is, what about… Annabeth didn't get to finish that train of thought for she felt herself being yanked back by something or someone. When she turned round, she could see the evil face of that spirit staring back at her and Percy bound and gagged in a corner. His expression probably said _Help!_ He was trying to reach his pocket where his pen was. The spirit flung her towards the wall and she crashed out on there. Blood was trickling from her forehead and her vision was turning blurry. "What do you want with us Tantalus?!" she managed to blurt out, before a wave of nausea hit her. This place was enchanted heavily, and like a fool Annabeth had walked straight into a trap, though either option wasn't great.

Tantalus stared at her and Percy with sadistic delight, as if he could already imagine how he would torture them. He said showing his brilliant white teeth, "Oh, I'm not going to reveal what tortures I have planned for you yet, I want to see the terror in your eyes when I torture you. You and the accursed gods of Olympus. They banished me down to suffer eternal punishment, but never mind, Gaia has allowed me to live again. She let me escape my punishment and she even gave me the pleasure of torturing you two. A very much sought after job I am afraid, it took me weeks of proving myself before Gaia allowed me to do so for she was afraid the meddling demigods would foil her plans. I will never forget the humiliation you caused me at Camp Half-Blood. You are the insolent brats of the Gods, who are no better than you! And now it is time, for my revenge!"

Percy spat his gag out of his mouth and retorted, "Tantalus, I love your white teeth, it is so shiny. I bet it was because you didn't eat anything bad for the past thousand years. Oh, wait I forgot, no food, no cavities!" Tantalus looked enraged when he heard what Percy said. Inside, Annabeth knew that Percy was trying to tempt Tantalus to fight him, at least they had a chance to escape from death or Zeus knows what tortures Tantalus had in store. Being in the Roman camp had certainly rubbed off on him well. However, she watched in dismay when Tantalus did not take the bait. "Really boy, you think you could tempt me with that? But I will do you a favour, you will be tortured later, you can see your girlfriend being tortured first." Tantalus said, as sadistic as ever. As he walked closer towards her, holding the smallest and the most razor sharp knife in his hand, Annabeth didn't feel terrified. Strange, she thought. Her head injury was probably so painful that it must have numbed her pain. Annabeth was actually anticipating Tantalus to make the first cut, for she knew that one more provocation would cause the pain too much for her body to bear, along with her head injury, she knew she would pass out, which was actually a safe haven for her. Annabeth could feel the first slice on her cheek and she was then spirited away, into the darkness.

_**Finally, I finished another chapter. Now I'm pondering which one to do next. Should I do Nico or Annabeth again? Someone special will be meeting with Annabeth, that's all I am saying. It just depends on whether you want to know it first or later. I'm flexible on how the story goes. So review please on who to do next. Also to comment on how I wrote my story. You expect it tomorrow? I guess so. Anyway thanks for your on-going support! C: **_


	7. Chapter VII

_**Phew, finally Chapter 7, enjoy. I don't own PJO or Hoo, it belongs to Rick Riordan. I, unfortunately, only own the plot of the story. So tell what you think after reading this in a review please. Thanks(: **_

_**P.S. Mnay voters voted Nico, as did my friends, so yeah here's Nico, sorry I couldn't do Annabeth.**_

_** MM(Guest) Sorry, I won't be able to do Percy, too many characters, not easy for me to write. I'm so sorry..**_

**Nico**

"Yes, I am finally going home!" Nico had told Hazel this before he skipped out of his sister's room in joy. Yes, he had literally _skipped._ He didn't care what others thought even if they saw this, he just wanted to go home. Well, maybe he would mind a little if they saw and made fun of him. If the Stoll brothers saw this, they would never allow him to forget it. He knew he was twelve, and that he should be acting more mature, but he just couldn't help it. He had been away from Camp Half-Blood for far too long. Even though it was a summer camp, he still treated it like his _real _home for he had nowhere else to stay, except maybe Camp Jupiter. But, it didn't feel right there. He wanted to just lie down in the Hades cabin and enjoy some peace and quiet without any annoying romans around, like Octavian for example. Nico knew he shouldn't be saying this, but he said it anyway, to him Octavian was a spoiled brat who was too used to getting his own way. He was definitely power hungry and he sure Reyna knew it too. She was smart enough to get elected praetor or gotten raised on a shield so she would probably have suspected it. Nico had always wondered how she kept Octavian in lin, for he always seemed to cause trouble no matter what. Also, he was Camp Jupiter's augur, they couldn't do without him for it was he who interpreted the messages from the gods, even though sometimes it was done untruthfully.

Suddenly, Leo's voice blasted through the intercom, disrupting Nico's train of thoughts. "All demi gods and satyrs are to proceed to the mess hall immediately, I have two very important announcements to make." The creaking of the hinges from the doors of Hazel's room was heard when they swung open. Hazel said, "Well, Mr Happy, I think I should show you to the mess hall now."

"Lead the way," Nico replied more light heartedly than he felt. Nico felt pretty useless on board the Argo II. He had fought dangerous monsters before, and for gods sake, he couldn't even fix a leak. Even Piper, as a daughter of _Aphrodite, _knew how to fix something. Piper had assured him before when she saw his face that it was because they had hung around Leo a longer time than he did, so they had naturally learnt to fix some stuff due to the son of Hephaestus supervision.

In the mess hall, Leo was seated at the side of the table. Everyone took their seats, all of them avoiding the head of the table. Seeing the empty seat there, it reminded Nico of Annabeth and Percy. They were still in Tartarus, spiraling into eternal darkness. They might also have a high risk of dying. The gods couldn't help them if they wanted now, they were weak against Gaia's superior strength. Nico knew that they were the strongest demi gods Nico had ever known, even Jason wasn't their match. With the two of them working together, they were almost unstoppable. _Almost._ But this time, they had the strongest goddess on their tails, it was hard to judge if they would get out of the ordeal. Nico told himself, "Think positive, you got to be strong for them, that's the only thing you can do for them right now." Hazel looked at him weirdly, like he had gone mad. He probably had looked like a lunatic there, messy hair and blood shot eyes. Whats more, he was muttering under his breath to himself too. Everyone was talking in the mess hall, however Nico didn't even register anything they said. What was important to him now was that what Leo had to say.

Once Coach Hedge had arrived(he was the last one), he clopped over to the head of the table with his cloven hooves. "Alright cupcakes, we gotta get back to Camp Half-Blood so let's listen to what Repair Boy has to say." Coach Hedge said, bringing up a few smiles. However, the nice mood Coach Hedge had tried to set was dampened just as quickly. Leo stood up uneasily, he cleared his throat and said, "Err guys? I have one good news and one bad news to tell you." His stiffness in his voice immediately got the attention of everyone on board. "The good news is we will be able to land in Camp Half-Blood in 5 minutes time. The bad news is that the romans are already here. They have set up their camp already not far from Camp Half-Blood. They seem to be biding their time, like some sort of strategy, so they are not attacking yet, according to what Festus said, but they will soon." On hearing this, the room turned deathly silent and Nico turned his attention to the Camp Half-Blood hologram on the wall. The camp was in a huge frenzy, there were demi gods in full battle armor patrolling the borders. Peleus that guarded the Golden Fleece that hung on Thalia's tree was also on full alert, putting itself protectively around it. "They know about the Romans," Nico said, his eyes stilled trained on the holographic image. "When we land, Jason can't go first, nor Frank and Hazel. They would think that you have betrayed their trust. We, the rest of us have to go first and explain to them, once we land. Okay?" When he finished saying this, there were murmurs of uncertainty spreading across the room, but they all nodded their heads in agreement.

"So its settled then, we'll land on Camp Half-Blood now. We can't Iris Message them, I have a feeling the romans will have a device that will record what we say, I don't they are weak." Leo said, before running off to the engine room.

Nico ran to the window, to catch the glimpse of camp. Even if they were going to be under attack, it still had its peaceful sort of look. With a creak and a groan, Nico could feel the air pressure dropping. His ears popped at that. Finally, it all stopped, wow that was a soft landing, Nico thought before seeing Leo run through the door, sweat beading his forehead. "Okay guys, we're good to go. So me, Piper, Coach and Nico stand in the front, the rest of you follow at the back." Leo rushed out before he led them through the door and down the rope ladder back onto Greek soil. By the time they all came down, a crowd had gathered and in the midst of it was Chiron and few of Nico's friends. "Leo, Nico. Would either of you care to explain to us why are you back and why.." Chiron was cut off by Malcom, Annabeth's half-brother. "ARE THE ROMANS ATTACKING US?!"

_**Okay that's the end barely got it out, I gtg now. Just a thought, Red is out. Taylor Swift's new album, how'd you think about it. Also review bout my story too! C:**_


	8. Chapter VIII

_**Hi Chapter 8 up, this will be a really short one, cause I have no time today. Sorry, maybe more tomorrow, I'll be able to update more. Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or HOO. So so Sorry for short chapter, I have no time and a horrible writer's block :p Anyway enjoy.**_

**Annabeth**

"**Where am I?" Annabeth told herself** before she got up shakily to her feet. She quickly looked around, assessing her surroundings. Typical daughter of Athena thing to do, the smartest move. She was surrounded with, lush greenery; plains of rolling green grass and behind her she could see a vast mountain looming there. It seemed taller than even Mount Everest, with its top basking in the clouds. _Why wasn't this recorded down? It would've made record history. _Annabeth told herself as she started to walk towards it. She started to suspect about it. After not long, she found an old mud path, and she saw a farmer wearing a straw hat walking along it. She reached out to talk to him, but he just stared right through her, as if she was not there. His face was expressionless and went she tried to tap him, her hand passed right through his body as if he was a ghost. She freaked out immediately. Annabeth had seen ghosts before in the Underworld, but no ghost/spirit she had ever seen was like this, so full of life yet so unreal. Just then there was a blinding flash near her right, when she turned, she saw a tall and graceful lady in a Greek chiton. She carried a lotus tipped staff and she glowed practically with power. Did she say graceful, Annabeth took it back. It was Annabeth's most hated goddess, the 'holy' Hera/Juno(think what you wish I'm going with Hera). "Don't think of me like that Annabeth, I know what you are thinking. My power here is exceptionally strong here. I have a feeling you know what I'm talking about, daughter of Athena." Hera said curtly and with a tinge of sarcasm in her voice.

"That means my suspicions are correct, this is Greece and that is Mount Olympus? But, it doesn't look like this now, does it? It should be more '_colonized_"?" Annabeth replied, fingering her Camp Half-Blood beaded necklace.

"Unfortunately, for this daughter of Athena you are right. This is a memory captured from the past, Mount Olympus at its height of power when most of humans stilled believed in us. We gods often return here to restore our power, the memory always fills us, reminds us of what's to fight for. I know it sounds heroic, stop raising your eyebrows at me. But we gods have feelings too and memories." Hera said rather wistfully and did Annabeth imagine it or did she see a tear sliding down Hera's cheek. As soon as Annabeth spotted weakness in Hera, it was gone just as quickly.

"But I thought you were banished by your family because of what you did, exchanging leaders, and now with the romans attacking us." Annabeth said tentatively. Even though she didn't like her holy highness, she knew she had to be careful of her. Gods tended to lose control of themselves and vaporize whoever agitated them.

Hera said quickly, "Yes, about that. I had no choice but to flee or else my family might lose control and um take drastic measures. Anyway, I have come here to offer my assistance; it is more of a win-win situation. I cannot explain it now, it is never good to mess with fate. But I have something that might solve your problem. Tantalus is still bound to his curse as long as the gods still live."

Annabeth nodded her head, she knew Hera had just hinted to her how to defeat Tantalus. Strength was not a factor in defeating him now with Gaia on his side, now knowledge was the best weapon.

_**Sorry again for the short chapter, I have to go now. Enjoy and review please. More reviews more motivation lol. Favourites & Follows are good too. C:**_


	9. Chapter IX

_**Hi again! I finished a longer ninth chapter to my story, so sorry for the short chapter before this. Anyway, I won't be able to update as much cause I have this performance to prepare for auditions and all so don't expect as many chapters as quickly before. Sorry. Disclaimer-I don't own PJO or HOO, Rick Riordan does. Dang it! Oh well, at least I get credit for the plot (:. Okay now start reading before I get carried away and start rambling on about silly things.**_

**Annabeth**  
_**Annabeth could feel her soul settling back into her body. **_I know weird right? She had felt the same way too. In front of her she saw Tantalus's ugly face looming there with a sadistic smile plastered all across his face. "Ah, finally. The child of Athena awakens." Tantalus sneered and he said 'child of Athena' with so much contempt, he almost spat the words out. Annabeth was starting to get mad. First they fell into Tartarus, then they met Mormo and now, they met another bumbling idiot from the Underworld and also, their ex camp activities director.

When Annabeth saw Tantalus wave the smallest and the most lethal looking butter knife in front of her, she knew she was in for a lot of trouble, like the pain and the torture. Her eyes widened when she saw Tantalus lowering the butter knife into a tub of frothing liquid. It was filled with green goo and was bubbling up every now and then. When Tantalus dipped the butter knife in, all the goo surged forward towards the butter knife, as if it was anxious to get used on some poor and unsuspecting victim, like herself, just that she wasn't unsuspecting. She started to struggle, trying to break free from her bonds. As much as she did not want to please Tantalus by letting him see that she was afraid, she knew that the bubbling green goo must be poisonous or harmful to her body. The liquid looked so radioactive, it was worse than a nuclear plant. Once the goo touched her, she was a goner. Annabeth knew that, Tantalus wouldn't give them the chance to escape at all by simply poisoning her. She knew Percy wouldn't leave her and that was his fatal flaw. He just could not stand by and watch his friends suffer; he had to help them, even at the cost of his life. Tantalus slowly brought the knife near her face, relishing each and every second; he could see her fear inside of her and was using it for sadistic pleasure. Annabeth sucked in her breath, trying rapidly to think of a way out of this mess. Suddenly, as if seeing the radioactive goo coating the knife could help, it did. She waited patiently as quietly as she could. Sure enough, Tantalus put his head near hers, enjoying this moment. Once he was close enough, Annabeth gathered all the spit in her mouth and spat at him. It wasn't a typical thing for the daughter of Athena to do, but she was desperate. Anyway, desperate situations call for desperate measures, so she didn't think about it much. Tantalus was still in a shock from her spit. Annabeth knew his shock wouldn't last, so she took action. She used both her legs, that were bound together, and whacked him off his feet. The butter knife fell out of his hands and landed on the floor and few feet anyway from her. Tantalus was unconscious as when Annabeth kicked him, his head came into contact with the very, very hard concrete (?) floor of Tartarus. Annabeth wasted no time at all, she wriggled over to the butter knife, now steaming against the floor. She put the ropes that were tightly binding her hands on the radioactive substance. She could now feel the heat it was producing burning her hand. _Thank the gods it didn't touch me,_ Annabeth thought as she lifted her hands up, where the ropes fell off easily. With her hands now free, she quickly untied herself before running over to Percy's side. _Percy!_ She mentally shouted when saw him there. She had totally forgotten about him, as she was concentrated on Tantalus. His sword arm was badly heard as blood was oozing out of it. When she untied Percy, she hurriedly rummaged his pockets for the ambrosia squares he always kept with him. She briefly had a burst of joy when she found them. After feeding them to Percy, some colour returned to his face and he was at least able to move his arm a little. But he was in no shape to fight.

Annabeth said quickly and softly, "We should go now, before Tantalus wakes up. Come on Percy, you are in no shape to fight him." When she finished saying this, from Percy's stricken expression told her something was wrong. Before he could speak, a cold voice echoed from behind her.

"Well, I'm glad you know that so you wouldn't try surprising me again." Came the cold voice of Tantalus.

"Tantalus let us go. We might even ask the gods to grant you amnesty when we _win_ this war." Annabeth said, trying to reason with him.

"Interesting offer, but I'll have to refuse for Gaia's offer is so much better than that." Tantalus said smugly before grabbing a knife out of his pocket. It wasn't just any knife, it was _Annabeth's _knife.

"Where'd did you get my knife? It was always with me." Annabeth asked angrily.

Tantalus smiled seeing her anger and smoothly replied, "Let's just say I _borrowed _it. Now prepare to meet your doom!" He added the last part in a little gleefully, like a child who just got new toys. "Oh don't worry about your boyfriend child of Athena, Gaia only has specific orders to get rid of just you, your boyfriend will be killed later on, his time is not up _yet_." He also said seeing Annabeth's concerned face when she looked at Percy.

Annabeth looked around desperately hoping to find something, anything that might save both her and Percy's life. When she saw the tree and the pool, she remembered what Hera had said, the hint she had given her. She knew she only had one shot at this so she had to make the best of it. Annabeth turned on her heels and ran across the room towards the tree. She knew she could make it and she believed it too. She could her Tantalus pursuing her behind, even with thousands of years of being in Tartarus, Tantalus was still fit. Once she reached the tree, she tried to scale it, but the branches seemed to edge further and further away with every try, it was Tantalus' curse, his punishment for eternity. She stood in the pool as she saw Tantalus getting closer by the second. She could see the look of triumph on his face as if he knew he had already won this battle. No chance of that, Annabeth thought. She forced herself to count to 3, while watching Tantalus near the pool. At 3, she jumped out of the pool, out of Tantalus' way. Tantalus could not stop in time to swerve and ended splashing straight into the pool. There he tried the lunge after Annabeth, but something was holding him back, preventing him from leaving his spot. _Tantalus is still bound to his curse as long as the gods still live._ That was what Hera had said in her dream and it was true, Tantalus could never escape his curse. She walked calmly over to Percy, who was still looking shell-shocked from the whole incident. She pulled him into an embrace, breaking him out of his shock.

Annabeth asked Percy softly, "Tell me something, did you ever doubt me for a moment when you saw me run off?"

Looking into her eyes, Percy replied just as softly, "No, I never did for a moment Wise Girl, I will always trust you." With that, he sealed it with a kiss, wiping away all the doubt in Annabeth's mind. Holding his hand, they walked hand in hand out of the 'room' back into a different set of passageways. As eerie it was being in Tartarus, Annabeth had Percy with her, and she knew she would never feel scared with him by her side.

_**Aha! I finished writing a longer chapter (finally!) Also, I'm so sorry for the short chapter 8, I was in a rush that day. Anyway, if you have any questions about any of my chapters feel free to ask me, I'll be happy to clear up your doubt. Also review please, I want to know what you think about my style of writing cause mushy love stories are not my forte. I will be writing Hazel's POV next, no more Tartarus for now. I'm getting to creeps. On my favourite Taylor Swift song now is 'Stay Stay Stay' from her new album, Red. Try listening to it if you haven't its quite nice the tune and all. Until next time.. Cya! (great now I sound like Leo… ._.)**_


	10. Chapter X

HI AGAIN. SORRY FOR THE CAPS FOR I CAN'T GET THE BOLD FONT TO WORK FOR ME, IM TYPING FROM PHONE AND ALSO UPDATING FROM THERE. ALSO SORRY IF IT SEEMS RUDE, MY FINGERS HURT. THE LINE BREAK WOULDN'T WORK TOO. ANYWAY FORGET THE AUTHORS NOTE, JUST READ THE STORY (:

DISCLAIMER, INDO NOT OWN PJO OR HOO RICK RIORDAN DOES.

Hazel

As soon as she'd gotten off the Argo II, she received many strange looks from the campers of Camp Half-Blood. Some of them looked at Hazel, Frank and Jason warily, some of them were shooting them, the romans suspicious looks, but a few of them muttered under their breath that they were traitors. She sussed that at least Frank and Jason heard this due to their excessive training at the Roman camp, which allowed them to be able to hear the softest of sounds. Suddenly, the centaur Nico was talking to earlier silenced the crowd which were debating among themselves about the so called Roman traitors. The centaur was wearing a Party Ponies T-shirt and he had a bow and quiver slung across his back. Hazel had never seen the Party Ponies before, but Percy had told her and Frank about them during his time at the Roman camp. Percy had said that they were really wild centaurs who threw really wild parties. According the Percy's description, the centaur seemed to fit whatever he said so Hazel didn't seem to think much about the centaur. Until all the campers bowed respectfully to him and managed to keep silent despite their dispute. Wow, Hazel thought. This centaur must be quite respected here, unlike the ones she'd fought before back at the Roman camp. The centaur had kindly eyes but they seemed like a thousand years old. "Hello children, I assume you are from the roman camp, the three of you. And we welcome you to our camp. We will discuss matters inside the big house where we will hold our war council." When he finished talking, a loud babble ensued from the crowd. Suddenly, a tall and slender girl stalked forward. Her skin was perfectly tan and she had a kind of athletic look. She took one look at Hazel and decided that they were not worth looking at and just ignored the whole group entirely. "Chiron," she said smoothly to the centaur, while casting an irritated look at Hazel and gang. "Surely you are not going to allow those traitors the stay with us. Also, how do we know that the rest of them have not also turned against us and work for the Romans?"

Chiron's entire body seemed to sag when heard this, apparently this girl must have been giving him trouble for some time already. Just then, Piper spoke up, " Oh Glen, just do us Chiron says and not give us any trouble." When Piper spoke, Hazel could feel the charm speak in her voice wash over her and felt a strange urge to do as Piper wanted. Her charm speak was getting stronger, Hazel thought to herself while waiting for the apparently snobbish girl, Glen, to reply. As she predicted, Glen replied just as haughtily as before and showed no signs of the charm speak affecting her at all.

" Daughter of Aphrodite, you have no place to speak to me like that, much less use your charm speak on me. Ever since you all offended the Romans, we have been under the threat of war that would happen any time now. But did you guys help? No! You just fled to the Mare Nostrum, and gods know what you did there." She said before turning her back on them and flounced off. All the other campers stood there still waiting for Chiron's order. Already some of them seemed to notice that Percy and Annabeth was missing, and we're whispering among themselves. Chiron also seemed to know to but he shook his head as if saying this was not the time and place to reveal the news. With that, Chrion ordered everyone back to their activities and border patrol. It was only then, the campers reluctantly left, the Demi gods on the quest to stop Gaia still on the top of minds. Once they were gone, Chiron led them to the big house, where their war council convened... around a ping pong table. That was just weird for Hazel, unlike the Romans who had a grand senate room for their debates and discussions, the Greeks only had some cheap accommodation. Once inside, Chiron quickly shut the door, bolted and locked. "Don't worry, this room is sound proof to prevent eavesdropping." he added when he saw Nico's grave face. "Now children tell me what happened, everything inclusive of how Percy and Annabeth fell into Tartarus."

Frank looked at the centaur in confusion, "How did you know that? We never told anyone about that, only we know."

Chiron looking perplexed now said," Let's just say I had a vision telling me about it. I am not allowed to reveal anything more, I had strict orders and I also swore on the river Styx not reveal them. Things must themselves out, it is never good to mess with fate. Now please tell me what happened from the top."

With that, everyone took turns to say what happened at the roman camp, the problems they encounter and the lost. After hearing what they had to say, Chiron visibly could barely seem to compose himself. "Umm, Chiron, are you okay?" Nico asked with concern. "Okay, I'm okay."Chiron said, droplets of sweat beading his forehead.

"So what are we going to do now? Gaia will rise in about a months time and we need all the forces we can gather to fight against them and that includes the Romans, but they are mad at us, thinking we are traitors and some people like Glen here also share the same thought. A war is inevitable if we don't stop the Romans or reason with them now. The gods are getting schizophrenic and they are forbidden to interfere directly too. And also.." Jason said, pausing uncertainly. He looked around for help and finally his eyes landed on Nico. Tell him, Nico mouthed.

"And.." Chiron prompted.

"And we found the Athena Parthenos. The Romans took it many centuries ago. Bacchus, um Dionysus told us that if the Greeks ever knew, they would never forgive us Romans, so this has to be kept secret." Jason said slowly, unsure how Chiron would take the news.

Chiron's face displayed no emotions and he just said simply,"Where is it now." It was more of a statement then a question.

"On board the Argo II but.." before Jason could continue Chiron cut him of swiftly. "That would be enough for today, I think Nico would be kind enough to show you around? More will be discussed tomorrow. And do not worry, this will be a secret until I see fit to tell the others." On that happy note, he sent everyone outside. Hazel had a suspicion that Chiron was trying to avoid contact with the more hostile Romans at the camp's front door, but , was in no position to barter with them. Hazel started staring at the borders of the camp, staring at the roman flag waving in the wind in the distance. "Guys," she said softly. Despite how loud her surroundings was, she got everyone's attention. She probably

had a weird look on her face for even Nico was looking at her strangely.

"Is there something wrong." Frank asked.

Hazel hesitated before replying, "No nothing's wrong, but I need your help, everyone is vital. I have a plan to stop the Romans!"

THAT'S THE END FOR THIS CHAPTER, WILL BE UPDATING IN NICO'S POV HOPEFULLY TOMORROW. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT IN READING THIS. IM ALSO SORRY I COULDN'T DO PERCY, THERE ARE TOO MANY CHARACTERS AND DOUBT I CAN WRITE THEM ALL WELL SO SORRY. ALSO HIT THE REVIEW BUTTON IF IT'S NOT TOO MUCH TROUBLE.. TY C:


	11. Chapter XI

_**Hello again :DD.. Before I go on and on about other stuff I need to make something clear first.**_

_**Q&A(someone asked me these so I'm going to answer their question)**_

_**Q**__**:**_ I_** don't remember any glen in the series and glen is a boy name. i think you mean gwen because charm speak never worked on gwen in the books because she had it too.**_

_**A**__**:Glen is one of my characters, you'll see how she gets that name later on. Also any other names that you have not seen in any of Rick's books are 'created' by me. FYI, she is in no way related to Gwen.**_

_**Q**__**:**_ _**1: its 'gaea' not 'gaia'**_

_**2: a nine headed hydra is not that terrifying or treacherous at all**_

_**A**__**: 1) I used Gaia because Rick Riordan used it so I'm just trying to follow his style, I don't want to change too much.**_

_**2) If you were a kid that was trapped in a bronze jar for like quite some time, it's easy to be afraid of whatever you see also you would most probably develop a kind of phobia. Also, I'm saying it from a twelve year olds mind(I assume he is still twelve), Nico was ,already close to dying once, I don't think he would want to feel that feeling in again that's why he is so scared, too much adrenalin I'd say. That's why to him a hydra was scary. Also, he didn't face one before; sometimes words don't cut it unless you have personal experience.**_

_**Q: **__**if u had read the first few chapter of the son of neptune, you should know that frank and nico already know each other and were kind of buddies!**_

_**A: **__**Um, I didn't really think they were buddies much, just kind of acquaintance, I guess from my interpretation. Anyway different people think differently on the same thing, so no one is really right or wrong, just sharing my thoughts (:**_

_**Q**__**: Hasn't Jason already visit camp half-blood before and know demigods from there before in the lost hero?**_

_**A: **__**Yeah about that, Jason already knew the some of the people at Camp half-blood but ever since Leo(possessed)decided to destroy new rome, the Romans started to declare war on the Greeks, but for the Greeks back at Camp half-blood do not know about this, they would probably think that Jason might have betrayed them for the Romans, so it would probably be better if he stood at the back.**_

_**Did I answer your question(s)? I hope so, also feel free to PM me or review to ask a question (:**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HOO, just my plot and my own characters (Glen!) Enjoy :DD**

**Nico**

"**I need your help, everyone is vital. I have a plan to stop the Romans!" **This was what Hazel had said after their meeting with Chiron, the centaur at the Big House. Nico studied his sister's face intently, he felt suddenly young and Hazel was his older sister. Technically, she was. But still Nico sometimes felt the need to protect from others. They both were children of Hades/Pluto. Wherever they went, they were usually shunned and disasters almost always fell on them. At the Roman Camp, Nico had taken much time to convince Reyna to even let Hazel join up into the legion. Hazel's face revealed no emotions whatsoever, but from her body language, Nico could tell that she'd really come up with a plan that might even give them a chance at stopping this war from happening. The atmosphere that hung over them in the air was so heavy, Nico felt hard for him to even breathe. Maybe it was just him, for the others didn't show signs of discomfort at all, just him. Ever since he had been rescued from that big bronze jar of doom, he was starting to feel really claustrophobic. He also tended to overreact at certain small things. For example, if Piper had accidently dropped something on the floor, he would immediately spin around and be on full alert. Nico never wanted to be at Gaia's or her minions' mercy ever again. Once was enough he told himself. However, keeping this up was tiring. He could practically feel fear coursing through him whenever something minor had happened. Now, he had started to envy Jason's ease throughout the day. Even without the feeling of claustrophobia hanging in the air, he could sense his friends tensing as they followed Hazel. At least they knew this was something serious. As nice as it was for Nico to return to Camp Half-Blood, the threat from the romans that were looming over them made Nico feel even worse than he already felt. On the ship, he had so many thoughts spinning around in his head at a thousand miles per hour until it felt like his brain was going to explode. Well dying seems like a better option now that his friends were at certain death partly because of him. Nico didn't like to be pessimistic but he kept feeling guilty that it was he that caused his friends to fall into Tartarus. If he hadn't gone off in the underworld to search for the doors of death, Percy wouldn't have to save him and they wouldn't be in this kind of fix right now. Jason had reassured him before, at least tried to for on the boat, he had told him it wasn't his fault and that it was fated to be so for it would lead up to something. Nico knew that if Percy was with them right now, he would have at least thought of a way to cheer them up. After so many months, it seemed unfair to Percy that he might never see his home and Camp Half-blood again.

Everyone was still in shock after Hazel's speech. She was usually quite shy among all of them so they were rather taken aback when she volunteered that she had a plan. Hazel had guided everyone, who were following blindly behind her, back to the Argo II. When she had stopped in her tracks, Leo nearly slammed face first into Frank. He didn't seem too pleased about that though. There was something between them and Hazel, Nico sure of it. The way they acted around each other, Hazel blushing, Leo stammering and Frank looking thoroughly uncomfortable. Nico had thought about asking Hazel what was the problem between the trio, but he was afraid that Hazel might not want him to pry, so he pretended not to notice and let her solve her own problems. Everyone was standing together in a clump, looking around at camp half-blood properly for the first time since they reached. The sun was setting, and it filled the sky with a peach-like warm glow. Piper, despite all the nice ambience, looked around nervously, before saying pointedly to Hazel, "Err, so. What's this plan of yours that has to be so secretive?"

Suddenly, Hazel tensed up. She put her fingers to her lips and shook her head, indicating that they should not talk here. Nico could see that Piper was bewildered by Hazel's response, but had also decided to do as she said. The in the silence, he could hear really distinct flapping noises coming from a bush nearby, Hazel signalled everyone to approach with caution and whispered into Piper's ear. Nico could not hear what was said, he only saw Piper nodding her head. The sky was starting to darken and in the horizon where the peach coloured sunset was awhile ago, was replaced with greyish clouds. Suddenly, a screech was heard and the bush trembled slightly. It might have been because of the wind, but Nico knew better since his years of training. He heard a scratching sound and some taps, then it was followed by silence. The eerie silence penetrated the air, and the howling wind in the distance did not help add to the of orange started to build up in Leo's palms. On seeing this, he rubbed them quickly together and said, "Why is the air here so chilly? I thought there was temperature control in here."

"Maybe the gods made it cold to get ready for Halloween?" Frank said hopefully. As soon as Frank's answer left his lips, Nico knew he was dead wrong. He could something more ancient and powerful coming out to get them. His skin was crawling and beads of sweat beaded his forehead. Suddenly, he saw a glimpse of light flash out in the distance. It seemed to be getting closer. Out of the blue, a blood curdling howl was heard and everyone, even Nico who was used to ghosts jumped.

"What was that?" Piper asked nervously, trying to contain her terror.

Jason stared ahead pointing towards the figure, "Well, only one way to find out."

_**Okay I rushed this out I gtg now review plz ty bye (:**_


	12. Chapter XII

_**Note: Click the expand button., plus the Sans Serif font. I think my word document hates me, I can't leave a line :p I know a lot of you have been complaining to me that it is hard to read the story. I'm sorry about that, it just seems like I can't get the line spacing to work for me. I'm going to post this first and see if its readable. Sorry for the inconvenience caused. Anyway, I checked with Rick Riordan and he still owns the rights, I can't get them.. :p So I don't own PJO or HOO **__**.. Anyway enjoy my plot! (:**_

**Annabeth**

**Annabeth panted as she ran hand in hand with Percy. **His hand in hers had calmed her down slightly, knowing that someone else, her boyfriend, was near and still

alive. The very presence of him made her feel safe, even thought they were in the most dangerous place in the world a demigod could ever be in. His hair was matted

with sweat and his hand was icy cold. "Hurry! They're gaining on us!" Percy said, gripping her hand even more tightly until his knuckles turned white. Annabeth didn't

mind about the pain, but the look on Percy's face made her even more scared about what was pursuing them. As soon as the words left his lips, the sound of pattering

feet could be heard from behind them. Occasionally, the scraping of claws against the rocks could be heard and also, a long and deep howl. From what she had heard,

Annabeth could deduce that the creature, or creatures pursuing them were light on their feet and were armed with heavily sharpened claws. No matter how fast they

moved and how many turns they made, they could never shake of the beasts. It seemed like the creatures had an uncanny sense of smell, just like a bloodhound. The

passageway they were running in was getting narrower and narrower until they had to move in a single file. Even to that extent, Percy never let go of her hand. Her

breath was coming out short and raggedly and the strong wind blowing in her face made it even more difficult for her to breathe. Annabeth didn't think that there

would be wind inside Tartarus, but more than once in a day, she had been proved wrong.

Just then, her foot caught into a rock protruding out from the floor and she was thrown forward. Annabeth didn't even have time to register what was going on before

she slammed into a wall of vines. She could feel a dizzying sensation and her head seemed to be floating in the air. _No, _she thought to herself. She mustn't faint again.

She couldn't be that selfish and leave Percy alone. Annabeth allowed herself to sit up for a brief moment to regain her bearings before she scrambled to her feet. Percy

was running towards her with his bronze sword glistening in his hand. Everything had happened so quickly within a split second that he hadn't had time to stop and

help her up. Grabbing her arm, Percy pulled her away from where she was standing, half carrying her. _Snap! _The sound of teeth snapping together could be heard as

the creature snapped its jaws at where Annabeth had been standing just a moment ago. She was still in shock, her head wasn't thinking straight and her hands were

shaking uncontrollably. Percy was still pulling her along, guiding her where to run. If not for him, she would have been dead a long time ago. She was slowing him

down visibly, she could see that. He strained his muscles with every move he took determined not to give up. Annabeth half wanted to tell Percy to leave her there and

get him to run. She felt ashamed at this very thought, she knew Percy would never leave her side as long as he could help it and he would never give up. Yet, now she

was already having thoughts about giving up. The soft pattering sound of feet she once heard was now coming in heavy thuds; the creatures were more determined

to finish their task more than ever now. The foliage of plants was getting thicker and thicker now and Percy had to use his sword to chop off some of them in order for

them to get through. A sickly sweet scent was filling the air around them. It made Annabeth feel exhilarated, happier than she had been in days. Forgetting about her

earlier queasiness entirely, Annabeth started laughing like a madman. Percy also seemed affected too. His eyes became large and broke out into ceaseless laughter

when the plants released another round of the '_noxious' _scent into the air. She rolled around the muddy path away laughing away, her sides shaking uncontrollably.

Somehow, she had rolled in a rock and could not seem to move. Her face was planted face first towards the rock, so it was hard for her to breathe. As she struggled to

inhale, her thoughts began to clear and the panic about the 'creatures' chasing them returned full force again. Beside her, she could hear Percy still laughing away. By

now, she realized that the scent that was filling the air was made by the plants around them, causing them to laugh. Like laughing gas. She felt never felt so helpless

before. This was something they couldn't fight, only evade. It was only now when her mind had fully cleared then she had noticed many white stones littering the

ground. On closer examination, she realized with a jolt that they were actually bones. Annabeth would have screamed in terror at that moment if she could. Now

everything fit into place, why the creatures that were once pursuing them did not enter this place. They weren't pursuing them at all, they were just driving them here.

This was a trap. Annabeth already had her suspicions, how could the plants grow inside Tartarus when there was no sunlight? They had to find a way to feed

themselves. Since Tartarus was also a place for eternal damnation for the ultimate evils, this was the punishment. Just then everything connected, the final piece fit in.

They were lured here to be eaten. Feeling the dread coursing through her body, Annabeth spun round only in time to see the plants growing long tendrils, wrapping

them around still laughing Percy and pulling him inside…

_**End of this chapter.. I hoped you liked it, I will be going away for like 2 weeks or so soon so I won't be able to update until then, but don't worry, I will still continue my story. Meanwhile, I would be nice if more of you reviewed about my writing. I get more motivation then I might be able to get a chapter out in the next 3 days (:**_


	13. Chapter XIII

**13****th**** Chapter up… I chatted with Chiron somewhere on and he confirmed my upmost worst fears, Rick Riordan is and forever will be the scribe of Camp Half-Blood. They won't need any more anytime soon, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Also, I'm sorry if I can't give you any names for the monsters, I get freaked out a lot when I see the pictures.. Ok, enjoy the story! :DD**

**Annabeth:**

**Annabeth could replay the whole scene** that happened in her head over and over again as he searched frantically for Percy. She didn't want to watch it happen again, but these visions came involuntarily. All signs of Percy had been wiped clean by the monstrous plants. She could not even see any trace of him. If she had not seen it with her own eyes, she might not have believed what had happened just a few minutes ago. She wasn't really distraught like the first time he disappeared, just still in a state of being shell shocked. Or maybe experience told her to stay calm and look for him in a strategic manner. That way, she would at least have a chance of finding him. _Maybe, _she thought. _Or maybe you couldn't find him the first time because you didn't love him enough in the way he loved you. _Annabeth was stricken when she thought this, how could she even doubt her boyfriend while he didn't even doubt her once and trusted her? The voice in her head seemed to know all her deepest fears and her hopes. It took advantage of every small thing Annabeth was worried about and used it against her. The voice in her head couldn't be her, she would never think these kind of things… _Would she? _"Stop it!" Annabeth told herself, "You will not think these negative thoguhts and doubt yourself now!" She said this with so much force she managed to quieten the voice in her head. Just as she was thinking about going into the bushes of plants to look for Percy, she heard a rustling sound coming from behind her. She jumped, startled but the sudden movement. But after a few seconds, the surprise turned into terror. After Percy had been captured by the probably carnivorous plants, she was on full alert. Nothing would make her put her guard down, at least until she had saved Percy. He had gotten her out of many fixes that she had got into, and it was her turn to save him. One of the many traits that a demigod possessed was that trouble came looking for them, whether they liked it or not. This time she heard the rustling again, Annabeth unsheathed her bronze knife and held it in front of her, as if it could ward off whatever was approaching her.

"Put down your weapon, I mean no harm. I just want to help you." A voice thick and raspy voice slurred as its owner approached Annabeth. Judging from the person's appearance from where she was standing, she could not tell whether it was a man or a woman. But she still didn't trust the person. Suddenly, the person broke into a run. Annabeth could see now that the figure approaching her had a quiver and bow slung across her back. She held up her knife in front of her, bracing for an attack. Instead of the blow she expecting, she was tackled into a hug. "Oh My Gods! Annabeth, is that you!" Thalia said, hugging her tightly.

"Thalia, are you really here?" Annabeth asked hesitantly, thinking it was too good to be true. She really wished this wasn't a dream, she also didn't want to get her hopes up.

"Well, you can feel me in flesh and blood here right? So I am most probably here, I can pinch you too if you like, just to be sure." Thalia said before, poking Annabeth in the stomach playfully.

"Stop, stop!" Annabeth laughed before pulling Thalia to face her. "This is serious. Percy is missing, the plants that you just ran past took him away. I know it sounds preposterous, but its true, and you have to help me rescue him back. Also, why are you in Tartarus?"

Thalia frowned stonily at the rock below her before saying, "Forget about why I am here, forget about the war and forget about Percy! Why are we doing this anyway? Being pawns of the Gods and doing their bidding. Also, we are dying in place of them, the Gods don't die! Come with me Annabeth, we can forget about this mess and be like sisters to each other. Let the gods rot in Tartarus who cares! Isn't that where you're being held now? Come with me Annabeth." This was sounding seriously a lot like what Luke had told Annabeth before. Before she could say a word, Thalia grabbed her by the wrist and yanked her along the pathway, out of the way of the plants. She then took a turn Ananbeth didn't see before. Annabeth started to squirm under Thalia's grasp, trying desperately to get away and find Percy, but Thalia's grip was as strong as the Celestial Bronze knife she was holding. Something was wrong with her, Annabeth knew that in her mind. Thalia didn't act like that. She didn't even support Luke when he sided with Kronos during the Titan War.

Suddenly, Thalia stopped. She turned around and gave Annabeth a smirk. She then opened her mouth and spoke, but it wasn't Thalia's voice. "Demigod do not resist me for I have what you hold dearest to your heart and if you do not cooperate, his light will be drained and you, girl will be the cause of it." Upon saying this, she cackled and very un-Thalia like laugh before pulling Annabeth along again. She dragged her into an abandoned campsite and pushed her onto a mess of blankets. "Rest now, you will need your strength for the tasks I will present you with tomorrow. Also, don't think about running away, I have means of tracking you down in this accursed hell hole and your punishment will be indeed _serious_." She said before stalking off to somewhere nearby. Annabeth wished she wouldn't take the form of Thalia, maybe someone else as the thought that her _best _friend would betray the gods was just too much. Annabeth knew she should get some sleep, if she wanted to find a way to escape; she was going to need her strength also for whatever tenuous task the _creature_ had in store for her. After many toss' and turns, Annabeth finally drifted off to sleep. And she heard someone, a man say one thing.

"Where is Percy?!"

_**Yes! The end of the chapter, which means I managed to write another one :DD Also I will leave an Author's Note tomorrow about when im going away(: Pls review, they motivate me to write more. Also, if I get a few more reviews, I might try to update another chapter tomorrow;) Also, Im sorry if any characters are a little OOC, suggestions are also taken. Until we meet again!**_


	14. Chapter XIV

_**Yeah! I'm back! Just so you know, I was writing on my vacation and I have around 3 chapters done up on paper. Just give me some time to edit them and type it all up. I think you can at least expect one for each day. Also, I hope you like them, suggestions will be taken if relevant, I need more ideas anyway. I just had a weird thought while I was writing it up, Leo oppa gangnam styling at the campfire in Camp Half-Blood. Lol, that would be funny. Anyway, I do not own PJO nor HOO, Rick does. Sighz… But, read my story and tell me what you think(: I'm also sorry for the A/N in the middle of the story, I did need to say it. I will be deleting the "Author's Note" chapters too so don't get alarmed when you see my story missing a few chapters. **_

_**Happy Reading & sorry for the OOC-ness C:**_

_**P.S. My friend edited some of it for me too, she doesn't have a fanfic account, I just wanted to give her credit here.**_

**Leo**

**Being a demigod sucked big time**, Leo thought as he approached the person holding the camping lantern. The figure had already stopped moving and was just standing there. Leo remembered the last few horror movies he had watched, and the ghost or murderer always lured its victims towards then. Now that Leo knew that there was such a thing as the Underworld, and that ghosts/spirits really existed, he didn't feel really SAFE. Sure, he had powers such as control over fire, but that didn't seem to reassure him one bit. What if what was shown in the movie was true, and the same gory fate that befell on those victims would fall on him and his friends? Or worse, what if Gaia sent someone or something to get rid of them and send them to eternal damnation? Even so, that word not be surprising since they would stand in her way from awaking and taking over the world and stuff. He glanced nervously around at his friends, hoping for some comfort. When his line of sight landed on Hazel, his heart skipped a beat, and he felt a warm sensation spreading from his hands and enveloping the rest of his body. Leo tended to like pretty girls and girls who were totally out of his league, in this case, Hazel was both. But unlike other times with other girls, like Khione etc, he had never felt this kind of sensation before. Is this what love really felt like, not merely just a crush? He thought, momentarily forgetting his fear about the 'ghost'. Once he thought that, he felt guilty straightaway. Although there was no one to hear him, he knew Hazel already had a boyfriend and he couldn't be selfish enough to break them apart. Also, why Hazel seemed to fancy him a little was probably because she had gone out with his great-great grandfather before and he reminded her of him. Weird right? It was hard for him to take in at first, but after Hazel had explained, it didn't feel as bad as the first time. W his skin was tingling like crazy now, and he started to feel warmer and warmer. Finally, Hazel turned around to face Leo and said to him in a low voice,"Leo, I know you must feel nervous right now, but could please try to control yourself and 'turn off' your flames? We really don't need to attract any more attention now." Turn off his flames?! Leo stared at Hazel and his friends uncomprehendingly , until he looked down. His palms were ablaze and his forearm was flowing red like they were hot coals being places in a fire. I wanted to look good like Jason and this is what I become, Leo thought. Flaming hot...

Leo flushed when he saw Hazel's expression. He was not used to being the centre of attention especially with the girl he had a crush on. He quickly quenched his fire and looked away. So the tingling sensation wasn't because he really liked Hazel, but it was because of his 'fire power'. Sure, it sounded cool when he said it out loud, like it was the most awesome power to have, but deep down, Leo didn't like his power one bit. Well, maybe occasionally when it came handy, but mostly, he disliked it. Nyssa, his half-sister had said before the children of Hephaestus born with fire power were usually a bad omen. Was he a bad omen? Yeah, you could say that on most cases. His powers were also the cause of his mother's death and he would never forget it. Also, he was horrible at controlling his fire powers, which made it from 'cool' to 'lame'. Piper was putting her finger to her lips while Nico was giving him a suspicious glance, like he was saying: Don't mess with my sister, so already has a boyfriend! Even though Nico was younger than him **(A/N:I assume Leo is 16, since Jason is and he, Piper and Leo were in the same class)**, he still looked pretty intimidating, especially now, when all the shadows in the dark seemed to follow wherever he went.

After all this time Leo had spent being wrapped up in his own problems, he had failed to notice that they were only a few steps away from the lantern and whoever was holding it. All the fears about ghosts and monsters immediately returned to him and almost everything else was forgotten. Almost. Suddenly, someone called out, "Who's there? Show yourself!" Leo looked at Piper curiously, for she was the one who most likely would have spoken, but she hasn't uttered a word. If it was not Piper who had spoken, it would have been... At this moment, the bushes rustled violently, startling everyone. Leo's eyes darted around nervously and he started pulling out random tools from his tool belt. A screw driver, some nuts and...dental floss? Leo didn't know his tool belt could produce tools for oral hygiene too until now, but he didn't actually try before. But since he could pull out breath mints last time, anything was possible. He steadied his hand and readied his aim. Just then, a branch was hurled at them and Leo managed to jump aside to avoid it. Leo threw his box of dental floss in the 'attacker's' direction.

"Ow!" came a voice, before girl with athletic looking complexion appeared, it was Glen. Leo had recognized her for she was very athletic looking and also totally out of his league. She had never talked to him before, she seemed too cocky to talk to anyone she deemed beneath herself, which was probably almost everyone. Also, he didn't see anyone around camp much last time for he spent most of his time working on the Argo II at Bunker 9.

"What are you people doing here at this time of the night? It's way past curfew already for any cabin." Glen said bossily, pointing a finger at Leo and company. "Also, who threw the box at me? I know it was one of you..."

Piper, whom Leo guesses couldn't stand Glen immediately spat back, "Yeah? So what if we are here after curfew? I was showing my new friends around. Just because you are the daughter of Nike, doesn't mean you get to have your way in everything and win. Also, what about you? What are you doing here? I heard that you were never enrolled for border patrol at all."

For a brief moment, Glen's mask slipped and she looked stunned and at a loss of words. Her hands trembled a little and her teeth were chattering. It seemed that she was experiencing some sort of chill only she could feel. However, the next second, Glen regained her composure and was as haughty as before. "That is none of your business _demigod! _But I will not let this matter slide!" With that, Glen flounced off, leaving the box of dental floss halfflattened on the wet, mossy ground. The rest of the group seemed frozen in place and were just staring open-mouthed. Whether it was Piper's ferocity or Glen's unreasonable attitude, Leo didn't know. Once Glen was out of sight, the silence Leo had once _heard_ before now penetrated the air, again.

"So, err Hazel, what are we going to do? You really need to tell u your plans, we can't stay clueless or we won't be able to help." Jason said slowly, breaking the silence. Looking behind her shoulder, Hazel said, "We'll talk inside, after that we can go back to bed. The Argo II is soundproof right?" This question was directed at Leo who nodded his head vigorously, confirming her thoughts. "Then we can discuss my plan inside there in private first, for I am afraid that the Greeks may misunderstand and treat us all like traitors if they hear about my plan. I know I can trust you guys, also I don't want to get Chiron into trouble, he seems nice and he already has problems of his own to deal with." Hazel continued before sprinting up the steps that led to the Argo II

_**Finished! What do you think? Review pls, I type faster with more reviews, they motivate me! Also, constructive criticism is welcomed too. I need some points to work on or I might get a big head. For the next chapter, it will be Leo again. It's time for his turn in the spotlight, and in MOA, Nemesis said he would be the seventh wheel. What does that mean? So because of that, Leo will be crucial to the story too, his choices will affect their quest. Signing off now ;)**_


	15. Chapter XV

_**Yay! Chapter 15! I'm giving you a hint, it will Leo's POV in the next chapter AGAIN, and then after that it would be Annabeth. There will be something more interesting in the next chapter, that's what I think.. This is just about Leo's thoughts blahblah, but read it.. It'll be relevant. Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HOO, Rick does.**_

_**Sorry for the OOCness, but I needed to go in depth with Leo's feelings, sometimes I think he is neglected and needs to keep up a happy-go-lucky attitude in order to feel not-neglected.. Anyway, Happy Reading (:**_

**Leo**

**That night, Leo couldn't sleep. **He kept tossing and turning in bed, shutting his eyes real tight, but his usual easy sleep had abandoned him. In his mind, he kept going over Hazel's plan and what she said about getting the Romans to return the _Athena Parthenos _to the Greeks, like a peace offering. The problem was how they were going to convince the Romans to do it and Hazel, wanted Leo to explain about the bombing on New Rome. Leo knew that this was supposed to stop the impending war, but he didn't like to do it. What if the Romans didn't see it the way the others did, what if they still thought it was a deliberate action done by the Greeks along with the Roman traitors and that they were just using Gaia as an excuse to humiliate them? He knew that what mattered most to the Romans was their pride; they wouldn't let someone attack their camp, even if it wasn't him in a sound mind, get away with it. Hazel didn't explain any further after that, but Leo had the feeling that she was holding back something more. What else could make the situation worse than it already was? As usual, Leo didn't have a clue what was coming for him next. He was staring up to the ceiling from his bed in his own private room at the Hephaestus cabin, feeling very alone. As cool as it was having his own room, Leo felt more miserable than happy now. With Gaia wanting to take over the world and monsters lurking all over the place, Leo got the creeps whenever he was alone and in the dark. When he was sleeping on board the Argo II, he could occasionally hear the clip-clopping or Coach Hedge's hooves as he prowled along the corridors at night 'guarding' the ship from invaders or going towards the mess hall for a snack, but at least that had comforted him. Now, he was starting to get more and more fidgety by the minute, as if someone flicked his ADHD switch from 'low' to 'full blast'. As he sat up on his bed, Leo couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched and he somehow knew that it wasn't his imagination running wild. Sleeping back at his old bed made him miss everything he had on the Argo II, especially the rhythmic swaying of boat when they were flying in the air. Grabbing his tool belt from his bedside, he slipped out in his pajamas, praying that no one would spot him out here, for it would be embarrassing that his pajamas had banana prints all over them and that also he was breaking on of the Camp rules. Any roaming harpies would have the permission to eat him, which would be real bad.

Once outside, Leo heaved a sigh of relief and headed for the Argo II, which was only a five minutes' walk from his cabin. The fresh air calmed Leo down a lot and the sight of Festus as the masthead did the trick too. Hitting a hidden switch near the front of the boat, a rope ladder slid down silently, allowing Leo to board the switch without using the main entrance which would have made a lot of unwanted groaning and creaking noises. When he reached the deck of the Argo II, he headed straight to where Festus was, the control panel. There, he started working on the minor problems the ship had, fixing them up as best as he could, you would never know when an attack might come. The feeling of peace that he had felt when he walked out of his cabin had abandoned him now, for the second time, he felt like someone was watching him. Maybe it was just his nerves, Leo thought trying to reassure himself, but inside, he knew it was something else altogether. He debated whether or not he should continue working on the ship out there in the open or whether he should get some sleep. Looking at the now pitch dark sky and the creepy silhouettes of the trees surrounding him, he decided to try and sleep. It wasn't as if he was chicken or something, but it was because he knew that some things shouldn't be messed with alone and at night. Just as he was about to exit from the ship, he had a brilliant idea. Usually, his brilliant ideas always got him ended up in hot soup, but he was sure his idea would help him to calm down. Well, at least it would give him some space. After many days and nights on the Argo II, Leo found it hard to go anywhere without the slight swaying of the boat. It was hard for him to adjust to the now firm and sold ground to such an extent that occasionally, his body would automatically sway to the 'invisible' choppiness of the boat on land. Most of the time, people would should him a weird look that said: _Look! That's the loony ADHD kid, best to stay clear of him. _As much as Leo didn't like it, he realized that that was the only time he had been in the center of attention. Well, it was one of the _few_ times anyway. Unlike him, Jason had plenty of time in the spotlight, whether he was back at the Roman camp or here. He was a Roman praetor, check for power. He was the son of Jupiter/Zeus, check for a super powerful dad. He had the looks and the kind of aura that makes you feel that you would have to do your best and impress him when he was around, check for charisma. So in total, when Jason was around, Leo was the zero while Jason was the hero. It wasn't as if Leo was jealous of him, like the other guys at camp, but maybe he just envied his good life a tiny bit. Truth to be told, he envied Jason _a lot _more than he let on. Walking back over to the control panel again, Leo flipped the switch from 'automatic' to 'manual', which meant he would have to power the lights and stuff the old-fashioned way. At least he wouldn't attract much attention with the bright lights and all. Grabbing a torch from one of the drawers, Leo made his way towards his room.

Once he was inside, he drew all the curtains tightly shut, chucked some cloth underneath the hole under the door and thanked Hephaestus that he installed light-proof curtains. It was only then he felt safe enough to flick the light switch on. Once the light had flooded his room, Leo walked over to his super comfy bed, and slumped down it. Even though it was made from Pegasus down, (none of them were hurt in the making of the bed, in case you are somehow related to Artemis and loves animals) it didn't feel soft tonight, it felt more like he was sleeping on celestial bronze. He started thinking about beds, his old bed at his cabin, Beckendorf's one, a dead man's one. Sure Gaia was ten times more scary, but the idea that Beckendorf might still be lurking around there made him freak out and hate the bed. Wow, Leo thought. Discrimination against a bed, how wacky can I get? Anyway it wasn't the bed's fault that its owner had died, Beckendorf had died a heroes death while he was on a quest. Good grief, Leo was talking to himself about a bed, how much more loony could he get?

Sitting upright on the bed, he thought it would take ages for him to get even a wink of sleep, but as soon as his head hit the pillow, he drifted off into a deep sleep. Everything was in pitch darkness until he saw the place, the House of Hades.

_**Ok, this wasn't as exciting as it should be, for what I wrote on my notebook was two times longer than this, but I cut it short. Keep you in suspense ;). Now I feel evil.. LOL. Please review, I realized I have been getting lesser and lesser.. Maybe it was because I went for my holiday.. But please please review, it encourages me to right faster and better stories.. (: I won't have as much time on the computer now, so I may take a little longer to type everything up, sorry about that. Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter C:**_


	16. Chapter XVI

**I finished! Hahahahaha *that was me getting infected by Leo's ADHD* Ok I hope you enjoy this chapter and review please, I could use more ideas. Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HOO, Rick Riordan does.. Unfortunately for me :'( *sniffles* But nevermind about that, just enjoy the chapter, I hope it wasn't awful..**

**Happy Reading (:**

**Leo**

**When he opened his eyes again, **he knew for a fact that he wasn't in his bedroom anymore. There was a huge mountain towering before him its perimeter was surrounded with gnarled trees. What type of trees they were, Leo couldn't comprehend for all of them had to same dried up looking bark that looked like it was peeling from the actual tree itself. Kind of like a coat of paint peeling from the walls after a long time. This probably meant that this place was ancient and no one had bothered to preserve its natural beauty. He could tell by looking at the way the trees were lined, the exact spacing between each of them was absolutely flawless, like someone actually bothered to measure the exact distance. It was definitely not the work of a mortal. Leo didn't think that they would have the patience and the skill to do what he saw. Should any other passerby see what he was thinking now, they would probably say: What a crazy lunatic, getting obsessed with a bunch of old trees and how they are lined. An old and worn driveway was built directly in between the trees, like those kind of things you see when you go to an expensive resort and have a door man waiting for you at the end. Rotting leaves littered the ground and moss-covered rocks dotted the place every here and there. If Leo looked front, then there at the end of the driveway, he could see a huge mansion with hundreds of windows. The mansion, also like the driveway, was once glamorous, before it fell into neglect. Leo could tell from the intricate carvings that were on the door. Wow, Leo thought, I can see that well so far away? It must be something to do with the dream. Behind the mansion, there was a huge lake which seemed out of place as if Poseidon was feeling random that day and decided to create a lake splat behind the mansion. It didn't seem to fit in somehow. Walking closer towards the mansion, he noticed that there were many stone gargoyles around the estate, all of them staring at the driveway with their cold and blank eyes. Like they were some sort of security system. This place reminded him of some old movies, like Dracula and Frankenstein. Maybe this was some sort of holiday resort for them to come to and take a break away from all the public attention. He could imagine Dracula playing the organ somewhere in the house and Frankenstein sipping some juice cordial beside him, complementing him on how horrible his music sounded. As he scanned the house once more, he noticed that one of the gargoyles had shifted its position and was staring right at him. Okay, Leo didn't actually see it move, but he could have sworn that it was facing the opposite direction before. Just as he was about to take a step closer and investigate what happened, he saw a blur of black fur racing towards him, baring its razor sharp fangs. It ran with such alarming agility that Leo had barely enough time to react before the animal knocked him to the ground and growled, "Leave this place and do not return or suffer thy vengeance! You have disturbed the ancient master that rests here with your presence! You have been warned!" Opening its jaws, the animal sank its teeth onto Leo's arm.

Squeezing his eyes shut tightly, Leo waited for the pain to come. Nothing. Tentatively, Leo opened his eyes, bracing himself of whatever horrors that he might see, but the mansion and the driveway were no longer there. Instead, Leo was in a huge cave. The sides of the cave had jagged rocks jutting out from them and a mass of slippery looking ivy clung onto them, making it impossible to climb up. The cave seemed to be lit up by some source of artificial light, for amazingly, he could see. Suddenly, he heard a twig snap and he spun around quickly, wondering who the sound came from. After getting used to life as a demigod, Leo didn't let his guard down that easily as before. He could hear twigs snapping and crunching as someone trod on them quickly, like they were running away from something. Suddenly, it stopped and all Leo heard was silence. Just as he was about to think that it was his mind playing tricks on him _again, _he heard the sounds again. The only difference was that it seemed to be louder, followed by a consistent thudding. Leo's heart rate shot up as he wondered who the footsteps belonged to. This was definitely not his own imagination, this was real, something was about to happen, something bad. Even though this was just a dream, Leo couldn't help being terrified.

Suddenly, a girl burst out from a clump of bushes, panting heavily, her honey blonde hair flying out behind her. It was Annabeth. Leo tried to call out to her, but his dream-self wouldn't let him do so, he was rooted to the spot and seemed to have lost the ability the speak. However, his mind was reeling with questions about her, but most importantly, where was Percy? Leo knew that Percy would never leave Annabeth's side if he could help it, he was so protective of Annabeth that he sacrificed himself and plunged straight into Tartarus with her. Before he could even think over the other questions that bombared his mind, a pack of wolves burst out from the same bush that Annabeth had emerged from. They were pursuing her. With every step Annabeth took, the wolves were twice as fast as that. She could barely avoid the fangs that came snapping at her. On closer examination of the wolves, Leo realized that they weren't what he thought them to be at first, but some sort of genetic mutation. They had the head of a wolf, body of some sort of spirit, and legs of bronze, attached to the body in some sort of way unknown to Leo. Looking at them already made Leo sick, he wouldn't want to see what happened when they ate. The bronze legs of the mutations were working undeniably fast, allowing them to catch up with Annabeth with ease. If Annabeth didn't have a head start on them, she would probably be dead. Looking at her now, Leo admired Annabeth's bravery for she didn't have any special powers to defend herself with, and she had no weapon. Annabeth sprinted ahead of him, apparently not seeing him, towards two crossroads. She skidded to a halt, and looked over her shoulder to check on the distance between her and the 'wolves'. Not much. She contemplated for a moment which path to take before she veered sharply to the right, which led to a dense forest, while the left side led to a cave. The genetic mutations seemed to possess a wonderful sense of smell, as they were sniffing at the ground where Annabeth was seconds ago. When they somehow found that she had turned towards the forest, they had stopped immediately. One of them shifted nervously on ground while the other whimpered slightly. Suddenly, they stiffened, as if they felt something and they changed course, bounding away from the forest and Annabeth. Something was really wrong here. Leo could just make out Annabeth running away in the distance, her shoulders shaking slightly like she was crying. "Annabeth!" he shouted. Amazingly, his throat seemed to work now, but his voice was lost in the wind. Taking a deep breath, he tried again and shouted, "Where's Percy?!" He could feel someone shaking him violently before the world went dark…

With a start, Leo woke up, his palms clammy and his hair matted with sweat. Nico was standing in front of him, him face grim. "You have to come with me now." He said calmly, but Leo could see the fear reflected in his eyes.

"How did you get in here? Where are you bringing me to?" Leo asked, sensing yet again something horrible was about to happen.

Nico rubbed his palms together, his mouth set in a thin hard line. "It's the Romans, they have begun their attack.."

**Ooh, cliffhanger.. Sorry to disappoint you guys, but the next chapter will be about Annabeth who is reliving the same experience in Leo's dream. What do you think will happen and what exactly is Hazel's full plan, the part which she didn't tell Leo? Well stay tuned and find out, ideas are welcomed and please Review, it encourages me that my writing isn't horrible.. Anyway, thanks for bothering to read this and I hoped you enjoyed it! C:**


	17. Chapter XVII

**Due to too many complaints to my horrible spacing, I took some time to space this one out, see if it is easier reading it like this now. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or HOO, Riordan does.**

**Annabeth:**

Annabeth woke up with a start, sweating all over. She turned around, opening her mouth to call out for Percy until she realized he wasn't there.

All the previous events days ago rushed back into her mind, memories and the horror as fresh as ever, like it happened just a few minutes ago even though hours had passed.

The blankets underneath her were crumpled and flattened under her weight and they were as good as none. Taking a swift glance around, Annabeth realized that she was alone.

There was no sign of 'Thalia'. Annabeth slowly got up, as cautious as ever, just in case the fake Thalia was nearby, lurking in the mangroves.

Even though she was alone now, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. Maybe whatever creature 'Thalia' was, fell asleep, and maybe she could escape. Maybe.

Annabeth remembered 'Thalia' had said before that she shouldn't try to escape. She even sweetened up the deal, and promised her a torturous punishment when she was caught.

Annabeth didn't care about punishments anymore, all she cared about right now was Percy. _What more could she do to hurt me anymore? _Annabeth thought, _I'm in Tartarus and Percy was captured._

The worse thing could ever think of them doing was torturing Percy in front of her, making her watch him suffer. The only thing that comforted her was that she knew that they wouldn't kill Percy.

He would be a great bargaining tool against herself, Poseidon and everyone involved in the quest. Suddenly, she heard claws scraping against the mud.

It sounded like whatever was approaching the make-shift campsite was in a hurry to get there. Her hand instinctively went to her waist, searching for her knife.

Instead of the usual coolness of the bronze blade, she felt nothing but air. 'Thalia' must have disarmed her when she was asleep.

Annabeth knew she wouldn't stand a chance alone in Tartarus, she'd be dead within minutes. Weighing her options, Annabeth decided that escape was the best choice.

Who knew what 'Thalia' had planned in store for her? Also, the other reason for her escape was that she could try and rescue Percy.

She knew that if their positions were swapped, Percy would still come for her no matter what. Grabbing a sharp pointed rock from the ground, Annabeth hastily slid it into her pocket.

Although it wasn't her top choice weapon, but at least Annabeth had something to defend herself with.

Swiftly but cautiously, Annabeth inched forward away from the camp and towards the marshy bits of Tartarus.

Occasionally, Annabeth would forget she was in Tartarus at all and instead, think that she was still stuck in Daedalus labyrinth where there was a way out.

Maybe this was because there were too many bad things happening to her, and she had started to develop a selective memory.

The get-up of Tartarus and the Labyrinth had many things in common, one of which was that they were both a nightmare for demigods which might lead to certain death.

The current place that she was in looked like a huge never ending cave that went on and on. She wouldn't know what would lie in wait for her in front.

Sure, it was slightly better than the maze of corridors she'd been in before, but this alone felt like eternal damnation.

Just as she was quite a distance away from the makeshift camp, she felt a cold feeling, followed by a chill down her spine.

Then, she heard it, the pattering of feet against the hard ground and the snapping of teeth. Annabeth didn't need any more encouragement before she turned on her heel and ran.

As she turned the corner, she caught her first glimpse of them. They were unsightly creatures, the size of a fully grown lion, teeth and all.

However, instead of the usual fur covering its body, the body seemed to be made up of some pale milky substance.

This was nothing new to Annabeth, for she had seen spirits in the Underworld with the same pale features.

But what scared her most was that, combined with its legs, which were made of bronze, it looked like the animal version of an empousa. Panic welled up in her throat and a wave of nausea swept over her.

With much difficulty, she forced her fear down and tried to focus on her energy on running as best as she could.

For the third time since she woke up, Annabeth sensed a presence watching her. But this time, it felt different; it didn't have the aggressive kind of feel to it.

However, besides her pursuers, there was no one else there. While she was thinking, the pace at which she was running had slowed down visibly.

The genetic hybrids were gaining on her, their teeth snapping at the spot where Annabeth had just been a few seconds ago.

If they ever caught up with her, she knew that she would have to say goodbye to her old life forever.

The mud beneath her feet were getting softer with each step until it was almost impossible for Annabeth to even lift her feet from the muck much less run.

The animals, however, seemed to have no trouble with the earth and they were as fast as ever. It was Gaia's doing, she was messing with her.

Annabeth was starting to get increasingly mad at Gaia, for taking away her life, her camp and even Percy. The thought of Percy gave her newfound strength, and she forged forward.

The mud clung tightly onto her feet, its weight pushing her down. It wasn't much different from quicksand, Annabeth thought. They had the same theory, the more you struggle, the faster you sink.

Stopping for a moment to catch her breath, the mud stabilized around her, feeling not quite as gooey when she first stepped on them.

Forcing herself not to look behind at the creatures, Annabeth counted to three before making a huge leap, from the mud, on to the more solid ground.

When she landed, Annabeth almost cried with relief, but her joy was short-lived. The hybrids were closing on her, more quickly this time round.

Sprinting forward, Annabeth raced away from the hybrids, trying desperately to avoid their vicious sharp fangs snapping at her ankles.

After a few more steps, she could see a fork dividing up the road into two sections. One led to another vast and dark cave, while the other went towards a dense forest.

After hesitating for a moment, Annabeth dived towards the path leading towards the forest. When she was quite a distance away, she heard a barely audible sound that made her blood run cold, "Where was Percy?!"

Forcing herself not to look back, Annnabeth jogged forward, towards the forest. Suddenly, she felt another cold feeling and she saw a bright light reflecting from behind bush.

There was no sun here, how could there be a reflection? When she saw it again, the bronze glint among the bushes, she knew what it was…

It was the glint of Percy's sword.

**Like it, don't like it? Express your comments in the form of a review please. **


	18. Chapter XVIII

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HOO, Rick does.**

**Also, an answer to alakarox question: My update is irregular, so I just update when I can. Sorry, I'm just random. XP**

**Happy Reading(:**

**Nico**

**Nico didn't know what in the world was going on. **He had got woken up from his sleep by Butch, receiving the news that they were being attacked.

Butch was breathing heavily, his face flushed, like he ran ten kilometers straight. "Come with now! The Romans are attacking us, they've already destroyed our alarms.

Only the power of Thalia's tree is keeping them out*. Chiron says everyone must meet outside the Big House."

Bruce said, as he panted, putting his hand on the Hades cabin doorframe for support.

Outside the door, campers scrambled around, grabbing armor, greek fire and an assortment of deadly looking weapons.

"The others?" Nico asked, hoping fervently that Hazel's plan still could be carried out. "They already know, it's just you. Come on! There's no time to waste."

Grabbing Nico's hand, Butch yanked him out of the Hades cabin and practically dragged him all the way to the Big House.

There were a pile of weapons and armor outside the Big House for campers who didn't have time to grab some.

Everyone assembled according to their cabins, except for Piper and Jason, who stood with Hazel and Frank. Seeing him, Jason beckoned him over, his face expressionless.

Many looks of outrage were clearly directed at him. Some even hissed that he was a traitor. Of course, this was expected; everyone would think that Jason was the mastermind in the plan of declaring war on the Greeks when they were at their weakest.

Piper put her hand protectively on Jason, returning the evil looks directed at him back to their owners. Hazel and Frank were also not spared from this, and the SPQR tattoo that was prominently displayed on their forearms did not help matters.

Suddenly, the murmurs died down as Chiron stepped into view, his bow and quiver slung across his back. He was in centaur form, making him look more like a leader.

Clearing his throat, Chiron said, "Campers, you know full well why we are gathered here today. The Romans are at our doorstep and the power of Thalia's tree is barely keeping them out.

We can expect no help from the gods and with the two parties praying to their respective forms, they will get even more schizophrenic. Because of that, we must be prepared that the magic that guards our borders may lose its power.

For those who do not know, Thalia's tree not only keeps out monsters, it also keeps out demigods from the other camp. So they are unlikely to enter without a member's consent.

War is imminent and everyone knows that. For all we know, this might be Gaia's killer strategy, for a house divided cannot stand and you are what makes the house of the gods.

If we fight, we must fight honestly, at least if we lose, we would have lost honorably. For the gods, and may this war end!"

On hearing this, the campers roared with appreciation, clapping their hands in agreement. "But what about Percy and Annabeth? Are the Romans not responsible for has happened?"

A girl's voice rang out clearly amidst all the noise. The weary silence resumed once more and everyone trained their eyes on Chiron, waiting for his answer.

Inside, Nico felt shocked. So this was why the campers, _his friends_, didn't ask him or the others that returned with the Argo II what happened to Percy and Annabeth.

Chiron must have given them and order not to say anything. Murmurs were rippling through the crowd once more and some like Malcolm, Annabeth's half-brother, was nodding his head in agreement.

"Silence!" Chiron shouted, his voice reverberating through the still night air. "What happened to them was an accident," he continued slowly.

"No one wanted that to happen and the Romans are certainly not liable for it or the rest who have gone on the quest with them. When you are out there tonight, bear this in mind.

We are only fighting out of self-defense. We should not fight because of that old feud many decades ago, after all we are all the children of the gods and no parent likes to see their children's blood being spilt. Now to your positions and keep your cool!"

With that, the campers rushed off towards their various battle stations, with mixed feelings. Suddenly, Hazel spoke nervously, "Where's Leo? Don't you think he should be here by now? I didn't see him with the Vul…Hephaestus children."

She looked at Nico pleadingly before he gave in. "Alright, I'll go look for him. But, we are definitely discussing how this plan of yours will work when I come back." Nico said, before dashing off towards the Argo II.

If Leo wasn't back at the Hephaestus cabin, he would probably be sleeping in his bunk on the Argo II. It took some time for Nico to navigate in the dark for Leo's room.

When Nico finally found it, he was relieved. Yanking open the door, Nico shook Leo awake. Leo was apparently having a horrible dream judging by the way he was sweating all over.

When Nico finally shook him awake, it took him two minutes altogether to explain everything and wait for Leo to take it in, regain his senses and start walking towards the Big House.

During the walk, Leo was silent throughout the whole journey. Nico felt a little sorry for him, Leo probably held himself responsible for why the Romans were attacking camp today, so he left Leo in silence.

Just then, Nico felt a weird sensation in his head, like someone was trying to push something in his mind. Then, he heard it, the unmistakable voice of Hazel asking him to meet her outside camp, at where the Roman base camp was.

When he told Leo this, Leo thought he was crazy, but eventually, he gave in. "So, erm, how we going to get there again? Remember there are guards around here, and I don't feel like getting into more trouble than I'm already in." Leo spoke for the first time, breaking the silence.

Nico waited for a moment before replying, "Hold my hand."

"Whaaaaat? I'm not gay, as much as I'm 'forever alone', I'm not gay." Leo said, with a flustered expression on his face. Well some things never change no matter what situation you were in, funny old Leo was still funny old Leo.

"No, I mean I could shadow travel us there."

"Oh, right sorry about that."

Grabbing Leo's hand, Nico _shadow travelled _them to the place where Hazel asked to meet. By luck or chance, he'd brought them to exactly where Hazel and the rest was hiding, startling them.

They all had flabbergasted expressions plastered on their faces, and Nico was sure he wasn't the cause of it. Seeing his clueless look, she pointed to the tent in front of them.

When he looked through the gap at the bottom, he saw Octavian standing there, talking to someone, and beside him was… Glen.

_*I'm making Thalia's tree to be able to keep out Roman demigods and monsters since, it would make sense as the gods never liked those two to mix. _

**Done, Like it/ Don't like it? Review please and don't destroy me for not letting Percy and Annabeth get back together yet. They will, I promise, just not yet.**


	19. Chapter XIX

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HOO, Riordan does, unfortunately for me…**

**Happy Reading!**

**Annabeth**

**The forest was silent, and wind came in little wisps of breaths. **Intricately carved blocks of _stone _were placed at equal intervals in a straight line.

Something told Annabeth that this wasn't right. Yes, she was glad that she had finally shaken off the wolf hybrids, but there would probably be a reason why they didn't dare follow her into this place either.

Judging by their size and agility, they could overpower almost anything. The fact that she had escaped made Annabeth wonder even more, why had she been able to escape?

As a daughter of Athena, maybe it was in her blood to want to find out the answers of certain things, even at the cost of landing herself into deep trouble.

The voice she had heard calling to her was also disturbing as well, she was sure it sounded like Leo, but how would he get into Tartarus in the first place?

Again her mind was crowded with thoughts and unanswered questions, bugging her to find answers. Annabeth counted the blocks of stone, there were twelve in total and with each, it had its own special design on it.

The first one, the one closest to her, was marked with an "I", number one. It showed a design of a man, in a toga, tumbling down a mountain.

Another person, a woman, was standing on top of the mountain with a cruel smile on her face. She had her arms outstretched, as if to say: _Come on now, you can do better than that._

Artificial sunlight filtered through the treetops, casting long shadows on the mossy forest floor. It looked like her theory of Tartarus not having light was proven wrong.

She could no longer see Percy's sword, and gradually, the rush of adrenaline that shot through her at the prospect of seeing Percy again, diminished.

Suddenly, she heard a muffled thump, followed by two more. She couldn't tell where it was coming from, but she was sure the source was definitely 'underground', if there was an underground in Tartarus.

Walking slowly, Annabeth traced the sound to one of the blocks of stone; this one had an 'II' inscribed on it. Contrast to the first one she saw, its designs were more special.

Little waves of the sea carved at the corners. The picture in the center was more of a shock than the first. It showed a boy and a man with a beard being tossed into the choppy waves of the raging see, and then suspended in the air, in falling motion, was a trident broken into half.

Now, the thumping was even more distinct, like someone was trying to hurl themselves into a wall of concrete. Annabeth was even more certain it came from underneath the block of stone.

Being an aspiring architect herself, she knew that she couldn't move the stone by pure brute force, it wouldn't work.

Annabeth could have thought up many complicated plans on how to break the block of stone, but in the end, she remembered what Frank had told her after their encounter with the Chinese handcuffs, 'keep it simple.'

Thinking that it would be a better idea to look at the stone first, in case there was a latch she could use to heave the stone from, she set to work.

For the first time, Annabeth noticed a circular plate of bronze was embedded into the rock. It was grainy brown and it had words inscribed on it.

The circular plate was split into ten equal parts, and there were two arrowheads in opposite ends of the circle. Five parts were in Latin, and the other five were in Greek.

Annabeth could read Greek easily, but Latin took more work. But, there were two words that stood out the most and Annabeth noticed immediately, that was Neptūnus and Ποσειδῶν. In English, that was Neptune and Poseidon.

Seeing the falling trident in the picture even more confirmed her suspicions. Shifting the disc, she made sure the arrows pointed to Poseidon and Neptune.

As they faced the arrows, she heard a short click and a chunk of the stone slid open, revealing a deep pit.

It was dark out inside, so it was hard for Annabeth to see. "Who's there?!" Annabeth said, making sure that she was still standing a few feet from the pit.

"Annabeth? Is that you?" A familiar voice answered her. Percy.

Shakily, Annabeth replied, "Yes, I'm Annabeth. But are you really Percy? I've had enough tricks played on me already."

"Yes, of course I'm Percy. After the incident with the plants, I didn't know what happened after that. All that I knew was that I got dragged in here and dumped into this pit."

"How come you're still alive then? You would have died from suffocation already or starved to death or dehydrated…" Annabeth said, getting even more suspicious.

"Oh someone provides food for me every day, and there's a shaft down here, a small one mind you, that leads up in the open. Come on Annabeth, help me out of here." Percy drawled in an unusual, un-percy like way.

Annabeth was now thoroughly convinced that that wasn't Percy. The real one would've told her to run or something. When _he_ stepped into view, Annabeth almost got a heart attack.

It wasn't Percy, but it sure was related to him somehow. The big bulging eye staring back at her menacingly didn't help matters at all.

Stumbling backwards, she dodged out of the way as the Cyclops thrust its hand towards her, probably hoping to drag her in. Unfortunately, she landed onto a trap.

As soon as she tripped over the wire, a net fell over her. Unlike normal nets, this had razor sharp barbs that looked sharp enough to pierce her skin, so Annabeth decided that she wouldn't risk removing the net.

Her injury was certainly going to slow her down if she had to escape again.

Just then, a shadow loomed over her. Tilting her head slightly, Annabeth looked up to see a woman bending over watching her, with an amused expression on her face.

Annabeth was sick of getting tossed around by monsters. She knew that monsters would kill her if they had the chance, but she couldn't take it anymore.

"WHO THE HECK ARE YOU!" she burst out, staring daggers at the woman, acting unlike a daughter of Athena.

Smirking inwardly to herself, the lady replied. "Why, I am Lamia, child of Hecate."

**I don't know what to the think about this, so review please and tell me how it was **** It makes me really happy!**


	20. Chapter XX

**Chapter 20 up, I'd like to thank my kind reviewers who have stayed true to this story. I just got the results off my major exams and I'm not sure if I did well. We have to use our results to apply for our new schools, and I'm praying hard I can get into the school of my choice. Athena, help me!**

**Disclaimer: I do not PJO or HOO, Rick Riordan does**

**Happy reading & I love the CHERUB series!**

**Hazel:**

**Hazel couldn't believe what she saw.** Even though she didn't know the Greeks that well, she would never betray them. From what she saw at the Greek camp, they were fiercely protective of each other.

Beside her, Piper had her hand clenched tightly on the hilt of her dagger. She was scowling at the tent, her eyes narrowed, like she was trying to say: If you get near me, I won't hesitate to plunge my dagger down your back.

"We have to tell Chiron about this, betrayal is a very serious offence to camp! Many interests and lives are at stake!" Piper hissed, shaking her fist. "I can't believe that back stabbing little twit would do this!"

Looking around at everyone, Hazel realised that different emotions were reflected on their faces. Leo's was pained, Jason looked sullen, Frank was nervous.

Only Nico's emotions were unreadable, just shadows hanging around him. Just as Piper was standing up, Nico grabbed her hand and pulled her down. "No," he said, his voice low and strangely calm.

"Chiron can't do anything about it, but I have an idea." Hazel wondered how Nico managed to be so 'at peace' with the present situation. Her own mind was reeling itself.

Fear, resentment, anguish and a whole lot more of emotions bubbled up inside. She couldn't believe that Octavian would so unscrupulous, resorting to such means just to win a battle.

In the past, Hazel already didn't like Octavian, but she always treated him with respect, because she thought that he was a loyal Roman who abide by Rome's rules.

For the first time, Hazel felt ashamed of being Roman. She couldn't tell what Piper and Leo were seeing in her and her camp. Rome was always known to be victorious and winning fair and square with smart tactics, not this.

There felt like there was a strong tension in the air and Piper, thank Pluto, broke it by saying, "Well? What's your plan? We haven't got all day.

Their Romans could be attacking camp anytime now." Looking annoyed, Nico replied slowly, "Listen! I've been around long enough with the Romans to know that they don't start their battles until the eagle is brought out by the aquilifer, right?"

Nico aimed the last part at Jason, looking to him for confirmation. Once seeing the nod of his head, Nico continued, "So if the eagle isn't out, the battle isn't going to start, yet.

My best idea is to get one of you look for Reyna and bring her here to witness what happened, then we can work from there."

"But then who should go?" Frank interrupted, scratching his hair.

"I think its best to send a Roman who knows the camp and does not attract too much attention. Me and Jason are definitely out, they'll know it was us immediately."

Looking at Hazel pleadingly, Nicocontinued, "Hazel can you go? You can blend in with the legionnaires perfectly. One to go will be best; we don't want to go around attracting too much attention.

We entered the Mare Nostrum remember? Any Roman will have the right to kill us on sight." Nodding her head slightly, Hazel stood up to leave. J

ust as she was leaving the clearing they were hiding in, Leo touched her wrist gently before saying, "Be careful, alright?" Noticing that everyone was looking, Hazel's cheeks turned pink.

Shrugging ever so slightly, she walked off, not wanting to look at Frank's face.

Entering the camp, Hazel kept her head down, trying not attract any attention and walked as quickly as she could to the Praetorium, Reyna's tent.

Everyone was milling around, their faces tight with suppressed emotion. Hazel wondered how she could sneak into Reyna's tent without anyone noticing.

She didn't even need to think. Just as she was about to turn, she slammed into Reyna. "Watch where you're going!" she barked, her face stiff.

Unsure how to deal with this, Hazel motioned for Reyna to follow her into the tent. Lifting her head ever so slightly so Reyna could see her, she risked it praying hard no one else saw her.

The surprise on her face was evident, but Reyna hardened her face into an unreadable mask before leading her inside.

Once inside, she quickly Reyna what happened. Once she finished, she looked up tentatively, waiting for her verdict.

"I cannot accuse a centurian, much less our argur based on your words. I need concrete evidence." the older girl said looking perplexed.

"But we have evidence. You know the tent at the very end of the via praetoria, the one for legionnaires? That's exactly where he is now, you have to follow me there and you can see for yourself." Hazel said, her voice in jitters.

Rubbing her temple like she had a massive headache, Reyna nodded her head. Even if Reyna was following her on the way out, Hazel still kept her head down. She didn't want to take any chances.

Once she reached the clearing where the others was, she put a finger lightly on her lips before pointing to the tent.

She didn't even need to ask Reyna if she believed her now, the shock on her face was evident. Just then she felt something cold on her neck, the blade of a knife.

Looking up slowly, she saw the face of Glen smirking down at her, her other arm also equipped with a knife aimed at Reyna. The sides of Glen's lips tugged up in a sarcastic smile, her eyes lit up golden.

Speaking softly and slowly, her voice dripping with venom, Glen said, "Well, girls. I'm so glad you could join us. We'll be having a little fun afterwards."

**Got this chapter out in time this week. Like it? Don't like it? Review please. **


	21. Chapter XXI

**Now first of all, I want to thank my awesome fans and also forgive me for the OOCness, its quite hard to write some characters and I'm doing my upmost.**

**Disclaimer: If I say I own PJo, Grover would kill me, so I don't. Rick Riordan(thy official scribe of Camp Half-Blood) does. It pains me to say so, but its true.**

**Happy Reading! **

**Annabeth**

**Annabeth couldn't believe what was happening. **Bad things were flung at her one after another. Now she was trapped and had another 'monster' staring back in her face.

Something had tugged at the back of her mind. Something she had read about Lamia before. She felt awful and Lamia's smug look did not help matters.

Sensing her discomfort, Lamia lowered her lips to Annabeth's ear before whispering softly, "This will teach you to defy Gaia. You may think that you still have hope, but I suggest you give up now.

You were doomed from the beginning; even your friends up there now have their own troubles." Hearing this, Annabeth kept her mouth shut and her face expressionless.

She knew that Lamia was trying to manipulate her and she wasn't giving Lamia a chance to have her way. Shutting her eyes, she counted to ten and tried to control her breathing.

She was squatting in an awkward position and was getting more uncomfortable by the minute. The Cyclops who had pretended to be Percy reappeared and strode up to Lamia slowly.

"What is it that you want?!" Lamia snapped, clearly irritated by his presence. Cowering slightly, he replied meekly, "Mistress, the wheel is ready for use. Shall we take her to the boy now?"

On hearing the Cyclops say 'the boy', Annabeth tensed. _The Boy? _That must be Percy, for all she knew, boys don't randomly wander around in Tartarus.

Tilting her head backwards, Lamia replied, "Yes, bring her to him. Make it short work, nice and clean. I don't want any complications. That little twit, Alabaster is closing in on me.

I'm not sure what he's up to now, but I'm still going to take some precautions. The thought of such a mere child overpowering me, it's just preposterous!"

On that happy note, Lamia flounced off, leaving a trail of bright blue wisps in her wake.

Now that there was light, Annabeth could see the Cyclops more clearly. He looked nothing like Tyson, his features unnaturally sharp and his abdomen round.

Using his large and pudgy fingers, the Cyclops carefully removed the barbed netting away from Annabeth. He didn't even have to chain her, he knew that Annabeth wanted to find Percy and would follow him to the wheel.

Annabeth shuddered thinking about it, the wheel would never be as simple as it sounded, and there was probably something more dangerous than that.

Slowly she got up, forcing her aching muscles to stand. Grabbing her with his hands, the Cyclops led her deeper in to the forest and across a series of winding roads.

Annabeth realized that he was doing it purposely so that she couldn't get back to where she was, should she escape. After minutes of walking into an endless leafy maze, the path led into another clearing.

There was a huge assortment of deadly looking equipment set up there. And right there in the middle, suspended in the air by a single piece of rope, there was Percy.

_The real Percy_. His sword was placed on the wooden table beside him, just out of reach. It was like Lamia was trying to taunt him, by keeping his sword- his way to freedom - so close, yet so far.

Percy's eyes were closed, and his face was unusually ashen grey. Annabeth couldn't take it anymore, the sight of Percy so beaten up and powerless.

She cried out, jerking Percy back to his senses. His eyes snapped open and his focus immediately landed on her.

"Annabeth…" He said weakly, unsure of whether it was true. "I'm not delirious, am I?"

Looking back at him, Annabeth replied softly, "Yes, you're not dreaming, I am here."

Suddenly, she felt someone yank her back. The Cyclops. She'd totally forgotten he was there. Sliding a knife out of his pocket, he cut the rope that suspended Percy in the air and he hit the ground with a heavy thud.

Hauling him to his feet, the Cyclops dragged him towards a huge round metal board. There were 4 straps on it. Pinning Percy to the board, the Cyclops strapped him in place.

Annabeth was too far away to help and even if she could manage to tackle the Cyclops, the odds were not in her favor. She'd probably get a knife in her throat and end up implicating Percy too.

Now that she was looking at the board, she noticed that it had words on it, each with a different torture method. Then she realized, they using a perverse method of torturing Percy for information and Zeus knows what.

They probably claimed that they were relying on 'luck', but anyone knew that the tortures were as bad as each other. Once the Cyclops was satisfied that Percy was secured, he turned to Annabeth and gestured for her to come forward.

Explaining slowly, the Cyclops wanted, her, Annabeth, to decide Percy's fate. He wanted her to throw the knife at the board. And she had to aim carefully, if she hit Percy, that was too bad and they would make her throw it again until it reached the word section of tortures.

Handing the knife to Annabeth, the Cyclops smiled with a look of satisfaction on his face as if he had somehow outwitted her. But, unknown to him, the Cyclops just made the biggest mistake in his life and probably his last.

Just as Annabeth was debating when the opportune moment was to attack the Cyclops, something burst out from the trees.

Truth to be told, she probably didn't have to think, for her distraction had showed up just at the precise moment, like it was a timed act in a show.

A boy dressed in jeans and an aviator jacket burst into the clearing startling the Cyclops. Taking advantage of the situation, she plunged the knife deep into the Cyclops neck and felt his collarbone snap.

Pulling her knife out quickly, she ran to untie Percy. Throughout this whole thing, Percy had been watching wide-eyed and helpless. The boy who caused the distraction looked almost like Nico, with that same hollowed look in his eyes.

But, somehow, he wasn't. Turning to face them, the boy said, "I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but we should leave now, Lamia would be here soon."

Looking at Annabeth, Percy shrugged and said, "Well, we're in trouble one way or another so we might as well take the chance and follow him." Taking her hand once more, they followed the mysterious boy out of the clearing and deeper inside the forest.

**Love it? Like it? Not sure? Review please, I need more support! ;D**


	22. Chapter XXII

**A/N: I might not be able to update soon for school is starting soon and I'll need to concentrate on my schoolwork. I have tons of drafts ready, but I can't really type them out for I have gotten banned from the computer. But don't fret, I'll find a way round it so bear with me for a week or two.**

**Disclaimer, I do not own PJO or HOO**

**Hazel**

Hazel could still feel the cold knife at the back of her neck. It's coolness against her burning hot skin. Her heart was pounding hard now, and her mind swirled with countless conspiracy theories.

But most of all, she couldn't believe that Octavian would resort to this treachery. Slowly, Glen moved them into the tent, her arm still poised to strike.

The sudden glare of light from the oil lamp hanging by the ceiling temporarily blinded Hazel, causing her to stumble. Her eyes were so accustomed to the darkness, white spot danced before her in the light.

Suddenly, she felt Geln shove her from behind and she collapsed, face first, onto the floor. Although there was a layer of fabric separating the wet grass from her, she could still hear the mud squelch when she landed.

Moving quickly, Glen bound her hands and feet, doing the same with Reyna, who now also was on the ground beside her. Reyna was resisting the other girl, fighting back with whatever part of the body she could move.

However, Glen miraculously, was stronger and she pushed Reyna down with such force that she had subdued her her for a minute before she started writhing in her bonds, struggling to break free.

After seing what had just happened, Hazel decided not to follow Reyna's example, for she would just waste her energy. There was no sign of the others and Hazel prayed that they were safe and ready to storm the tent with reinforcements.

Almost as if Glen could read her thoughts , she stood up with a cruel smile plastered on her face. Walking towards her, Glen seemed totally at ease and seemed to use this to taunt Hazel. It was as if she were saying : you are totally at my mercy and you can do nothing about it and cannot stop me.

Raising her hand up, like a senator signalling for silence, she said, "You don't have to gaze at the door anymore, your friends won't find you here, they've already been taken care of. Did you think Gaia would have left room for any mistake?" She said the last part rather contemptuously, and spat the words out.

On hearing this, Hazel spoke on impulse," That's it, isn't it? You and Octavian are working for Gaia? But why would you do that? You.. You know full well Gaia plans to destroy the gods and their children. Do you really think you'll be spared? You should be on our side!"

"I am on nobody's side." the older girl said curtly, "I only offer my talents to those who can recognise it and promise me power. I will never be looked down on again and nor will I stand in the shadows of my brethren, I will prove myself worthy to Gaia! Going back to help camp?

The idea itself is ludicrous, why would I pick the losing side of a war wedged between two forces? I have a choice to live! A that choice is given to me by Gaia herself, I would be an idiot not to accept it."

Next to her, Reyna spat out the gag from her mouth. Her eyes were ablaze with fury, and her usual calm demeanour was gone. "And I suppose Octavian was your partner in crime?" Reyna said icily.

Brushing a strand of hair from her face, Glen paused a moment for effect, before replying, "Unfortunately, that hard-headed descendant of Apollo decided to remain loyal to the Romans.

He even refused information about the Greek camp, muttering something about the honours and dignity of the Romans. Pity, he would have made an excellent general in Gaia's army when she takes over the gods."

"What happened to him then?" Reyna asked, a note of concern barely distinguishable in her voice.

"Well, Gaia always has a plan. Thanks to my upmost knowledge on the arts of sorcery, Gaia has decided to bestow me an ancient concoction, made by her herself. Even if Octavian would not work with us, he is still a useful pawn.

Unknown to him, his food was laced with it and soon, her would be under the influence of Gaia. Nothing can stop him from leading the Romans into battle with the Greeks. There would be a bloodbath! The very forces of humanity would tear each other apart!" came the gleeful reply.

Hazel couldn't believe that Glen actually believed that Gaia would help her. Had she not been in such a precarious situation, Hazel might have snorted at her naïve thoughts.

Looking at her watch, Glen smiled. "Oh, would you look at the time now. I must get going, I would never want to miss the starting of the bloody massacre that is going to take place, the startings are the most exciting of all, don't you agree?"

Her perverted sense of humour disgusted Hazel and Glen seemed to enjoy her discomfort. Continuing her little speech, Glen said,"Well I'm sure the Romans would be disappointed that their precious little praetor didn't bother to turn up and lead them to battle and had just disappeared, eloped probably with someone?

I can't promise anything, but I'm sure the answer would be far from excellent." The last part was clearly directed at Reyna, and Hazel admired the older girl's ability to keep her face straight and her emotions in check in times like these.

If it was her, she would have already lunged at Glen already. Stating this, it was probably one of the reasons the Romans made her their praetor for so long.

Spinning on her heel, Glen exited the tent. Crestfallenly, Hazel stared at her retreating shadow getting fainter and fainter as she disappeared into the background.

She had hoped that someone would be able to find them and release them. Hazel had been so focused on Glen that she failed to realise what the incessant scraping sound had come from. Now, it might be too late.

**Like it? Don't like it? Want to give ideas? Review please! ;D**


	23. Chapter XXIII

**Released this earlier, what do you think? Alabaster and Percy are really, really harder to write than any other character, so pardon me if it gets a little OOC. I think I don't deserve the death sentence yet right? _ Ok, you're probably skipping this part now and just reading the chapter...**

**If you're reading this, at a 'C:' to your review!**

**I know I'm being childish :P**

**Disclaimer-I am not Rick Riordan, so PJO & HOO do not belong to me sadly.**

**Annabeth**

**The younger boy in the aviator jacket led the way. **He seemed to know exactly where they were going, just like Rachel had in the Labyrinth.

He kept looking over his shoulder like he was afraid someone would pop out of the bushes and shoot him. Finally, when he was satisfied on how far they had come, he stopped.

By this time, both Annabeth and Percy were panting heavily. The younger boy, however, did not so much have one drop of sweat on him.

They were standing under a huge willow tree, its long branches surrounding them and shrouding them completely from unwanted eyes.

Despite that, Annabeth realized she still could see very clearly. Her eyes focused on the source of light: runes of different shapes and sizes glowing brightly with power.

Annabeth had always taken an interest in sorcery or _magic, _and after her encounter with Circe on the sea of monsters, she had been fascinated by it even more.

Sure, the way Circe and her attendants used their powers was evil, but Annabeth couldn't imagine the wonder of controlling so much just at her fingertips.

She'd never known the way how magic worked; reading about them in books was not enough. If she was like Percy, who had control over the water, she would've known.

But, she was free from all sorts of special _powers_, the only thing magical things she had possessed was the Yankees cap and the bronze coin her mother had given her.

She still could feel the coin resting in her pocket and she had no idea how to get rid of it. She had already found the _Athena Parthenos, _what else did her mother want her to do?

"Well, I suppose you have plenty of questions for me now, so spill. I haven't got all day." The younger boy said, jolting her abruptly from her train of thoughts.

When he rescued them, Annabeth hadn't gotten a chance to examine his features closely, so Annabeth took her time to study them.

She would never know the boy might betray them, so she decided to take precautions. Leaning against the tree trunk, the boy stared cockily back at Percy and herself, trying to intimidate them.

He was probably fifteen or sixteen and he had an Imperial Gold sword strapped at his side. Annabeth didn't like the boy's attitude, but she needed answers.

"First of all, who are you? And why did you help us? You seem very _reluctant _to do that." She asked, folding her arms across her chest.

Looking distastefully at Percy, he answered, "My name is Alabaster Torrington and I was sent by someone to help you. I don't know why he would want to save the son of Poseidon; he deserves to rot in here."

Taken aback, Percy stood rooted to the spot staring at the sixteen year old. He had a _why me? e_xpression plastered on his face, and his hand hung limply at his side.

Scowling back at Alabaster, Annabeth questioned, "You didn't tell me who you were sent by."

Looking slightly uncomfortable under Annabeth's withering glare, Alabaster replied carefully, "By my mother, Hecate. It was a favor done for her. I have no interest in helping any _upstart _son of Poseidon who indirectly led to the death of at least half of my brothers and sisters!"

Annabeth was taken aback, Alabaster obviously "_disliked" _Percy very much, but she still couldn't place why he would accuse him of the death of his brothers and sisters.

Before she could open her mouth to protest, Percy cut in. "Wait, let me get this straight, since when did I cause the deaths of your siblings? I don't even know them."

"It was during the second Titan war, nearly a year ago. After Kronos had been defeated, his forces were trampled down by the Gods and my siblings were all killed in the process.

Even when you sunk his ship, already some of them were killed, I hated you so did you know?" Alabaster said, his eyes cold and dark.

"Any demigod _I_ saw on board the _Princess Andromeda_, I asked them to leave while they could, and now you're blaming me?

They were working for Kronos and did you know how many precious and innocent lives were taken by the battle? It was all caused by them" Percy argued, clearly agitated.

Alabaster opened his mouth to argue, but Annabeth had cut him short. She knew that if she didn't step in, something nasty would happen between the two sixteen year olds*.

Gently, she said, "Stop it you two, can we settle this later? I'd hate to remind you, but we have Lamia and may the gods know what else is after us."

"The girl is right," Alabaster said stiffly. "We have to leave now. I have built a safe house near the coast, I have orders to make sure you stay alive, so no funny business and please listen to me."

Annabeth knew that Alabaster was trying to be polite, and Percy grudgingly accepted this. She could tell that Percy wasn't used to following orders, but was just glad the two didn't bust out both their magic swords.

The result would've been horrible. They set off, out of the clearing and deeper into the forest.

Annabeth didn't think that it would lead anywhere near the coast, but after being in the Labyrinth before; she knew that most things weren't really what they seemed to be, so she just followed.

Fishing a plastic card from his pocket, Alabaster tapped it twice, and watched the grey mist unfurl from it. It was taking the shape of a mortal man, and its face seemed familiar to Annabeth.

"Isn't that Doctor Claymore, the mortal who was the expert on the subject of death?" Annabeth gasped, "He came quite close the truth, and his books do contain reasonable theories."

"Indeed," the spirit said. "I am Claymore, but now, I am just a companion of young Alabaster here. I am told that he hates the other boy's guts, but he has been tasked with saving you from the certain harm that has been lurking your way."

Percy, for the umpteenth time of the day looked stunned, as if his brain couldn't catch up with the day's events. "Spirits that appear from a plastic card, someone saves us and hates my guts… My head must be messed with..." He mumbled under his breath.

Smirking at Percy's distress, Alabaster said, "Much has happened within your time in Tartarus and many seek to destroy you.

Gaia has already gotten the land above in turmoil; even demigods are neck to neck with each other. It is always easy entering a trap, but the hardest to leave it. We have risked much, saving you, and forces of the dead are now being reckoned with..."

*_I assumed Percy's birthday didn't pass yet, so he is still sixteen._

**Now, I'm happy that I have finished anther chapter! *HURRAY!* Now Review it please? That button down there means the world to me. :')**


	24. Chapter XXIV

_**Answering my awesome Guest reviews ;D I hope this clears your doubt, but feel free to ask more, I love answering questions even if they are random(except for some classified stuff, I've sworn an oath to keep it safe)**_

**NobodyI'm not that Cyclops in the Sea Of Monsters, okay? I'm just trying to reply a guest review: **_Yes, Alabaster was trying to get the better of Percy by sharing what horrible things might lay ahead of them, he still bears a grudge. But, as it turns out, Percy will save his life._

**Gracie: **_Yes, Percy has the rottenest luck ever._

**Scarlett: **_I'm not telling just yet, you'll see ;D_

**Purpl3: **_Claymore will be the companion as well as advisor of Alabaster, he will help them in the decisions they make, everyone could always use a clear headed person in times of trouble, and that happens to be him._

OoO Line Break OoO

**If you don't see me around for a week or two, bear with me! School's starting and I have a 3-day school camp on my schedule. And, I'll need time to settle in before I continue writing, failing my studies doesn't sound really sweet to me. But, I'll still be writing!**

**Disclaimer: Zeus, Optimus Maximus, will fry me if I said this wrong, so I don't own PJO nor HOO, Rick Riordan does. *Okay, I've said it, now could you put away the bolt? I wouldn't like to taste it***

**Leo:**

**Bound and gagged. **That was what happened to him and –probably- the rest of his friends. Leo must have gotten drugged first hand before getting 'magically' transported to Zeus' fist.

Leo couldn't get how in the world someone could somehow push him up there. It was a huge boulder that the campers used to use for capture the flag.

The bright side was that no enemy could reach him without difficulty, considering the boulder they had to climb. The bad side was that Leo couldn't get down if both his hands and feet were bound.

Many campers had started calling it 'poop pile' before, but Chiron had prohibited them from saying so, for Zeus tends to be picky about things that bear his name and Chiron believes it disrespectful to call someone a "pile of deer poop" after it was initially named after the king of the gods.

Leo didn't really get why had called it that, but he hadn't really had a chance to find out. The campers all stayed away from it as they deemed it cursed after Kampê's death during the Battle of the Labyrinth.

Now he understood. Even on it, he could see that if looked from a certain angle it looks like a large fist. If looked from any other angle, it looked like a pile of deer droppings.

No one else was in sight, just him, alone. Mounds of greyish looking mud were piled up at random places, surrounding the whole perimeter of Zeus' fist.

Flies were buzzing around the mounds of grey stuff and his internal instinct told him that it would not feel pleasant stepping on it.

Suddenly, he heard someone stomping through the under bush that grew around the area. It was consistent and heavy thudding, like someone was doing a march down there.

The silence, accompanied by the heavy thudding, only added to his anxiety. Everything about this place seemed too _uniformed. _Like it was specially positioned to look _normal. _

He started to have an increasing suspicion nagging at the back of his mind. He knew it wouldn't matter if he didn't get out of here in time. He needed to warn camp.

Focusing on his breathing, Leo summoned his power, allowing the heat to melt the chain links that were holding him. He had to force himself not to gag as the toxic fumes wafted up in the air.

Burning metal links did not help digestion. He could feel the sticky metal substance all over his body, but he was no stranger to it. He was raised in a workshop after all.

Leo felt a pang of longing stab him. Thinking about his childhood always reminded him about his mum, about how his powers had caused her passing.

He couldn't let it go that easily, the guilt was always there. _Stop, _he thought-spoke to himself, _you have to focus, lives are at stake if your suspicions are correct! _

Once he was absolved of his chains, Leo stood shakily to his feet. He knew his each and every move was being monitored and he had to act with caution.

They already knew he was here, he just hoped they wouldn't kill him out of cold blood, or would they? His thoughts were doing his head in, so Leo forced himself on focusing the task at hand- getting down.

He looked down and immediately wished he hadn't. It was a three meter drop to the ground and it was impossible for him to climb down, jagged rocks jutted out at almost every corner.

He knew he wouldn't really sustain any _critical _injuries if he jumped properly, but the idea still didn't appeal to him. He still didn't know how he had gotten here, but from Glen's betrayal, he knew she would do almost anything if she thought she would benefit from it.

He only wished he knew Hazel was fine. Squeezing his eyes tight shut, he muttered to himself, "Why am I doing this?"

Then, he jumped. His training back at camp paid off and he was silently thankful towards the nymphs of pushing him to train, not that he was going to tell them.

Leo landed rather neatly on the ground. He swayed violently on his feet, but he didn't fall.

His head swum and he felt like Hera had teleported him again: getting flipped upside down and then tossed to the far side of the world where it was nobody's business.

The bushes rustled once more and Leo felt goose bumps appear on his arms and legs. It felt _unnatural_ and the consistent thuds didn't help too.

He knew they were watching. They wouldn't let him leave. They couldn't let one person ruin their plans. Leo knew that Camp was nearby and he might have a chance if he ran with surprise on his sight.

But, he'd seen them in training before, they were dead fast. Looking around, Leo contemplated what to do.

His brooding mind was working double hard and his gaze landed on a pile of old wooden equipment off the far corner of the Zeus' fist. It looked flimsy, but it was actually strong and thick.

Leo realized that they were giving him a chance, a chance to live. He knew some of them and not all of them were cold blooded killers.

But, if he left the compound, back to camp, they would have to fulfill their loyalties and they would capture him. However, if he'd somehow managed to surprise them, and escape, he knew most of them wouldn't try as hard as they should to catch him.

They were family after all. The wood may or may not have been left there for him, but one thing was for sure, he was definitely going to use it.

It was his one way ticket out of the death trap Glen had gotten him into. Rubbing his hands together, Leo kneeled in front of the wooden scraps and devised a plan.

***Update's Story* I'm so happy looking at the 30K words on the screen. Don't ask me why, I guess it's just a satisfactory feeling for me, a feeling of accomplishment! **

**(Great, do I sound like Octavian now?)**

**Anyway, while the real me is waltzing around the room, telling all my family members that I have accomplished writing thirty thousand words, would you review this please?**

**Inspiration sparks for me when you do that, seriously, I'm not kidding. You can make a writer's day even with just one review, it's a MAJOR boost for them and people like me.**

**So can you make my day? *Smiles Innocently* C:**


	25. Chapter XXV

**Just came back from my camp, enjoyed it a lot! Now school's getting started so there will most probably be updates every week on either a Saturday or Sunday. I'll try my best to okay?**

**Answering Guest reviews (Please put a name, it'll be easier for me to answer.):**

**Emma: it's just me writing, not the real book.**

**Guest: I'm open to ideas, how do you think I can make it better?**

**Lotte: Alabaster hates Percy because he blames him for defeating Kronos and causing Alabaster to so-called lead his siblings to death. This is the awesome summary version of whatI think is true, you can search around Google for more detailed ones. I'm not very good at explaining things.**

**Harry: I'm glad you didn't think Leo was crazy.**

**For most people: I've updated!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO nor HOO, Rick Riordan does with due respect.**

**Nico**

Nico couldn't believe his eyes. The African cat stood directly in front of him, it's bright yellow eyes glinting in the darkness.

The nocturnal hunter reminded Nico of Lupa in some ways, especially it's stealth and ability to melt instantly into the darkness. Maybe wolves and leopards weren't that different after all.

He could feel Jason standing behind him, his body poised in a fighting stance, his gladius drawn. Jason put his arm protectively around Piper, clearly trying to protect her.

He was scared though, Nico could sense the fear so obvious in him. The leopard moved a few steps around them, its paws padding gently into the soil.

He was intrigued with it-the night stalker- the one whom many feared. It just prowled around, encircling them. The gesture was clear though, no one was leaving the compound.

He felt a strange affinity to it, probably because it also was a creature who had seen so much death.

"What's going on? Where are we?" Piper asked. It was obvious that she was suppressing whatever emotion that threatened to run wild inside of her right now and Nico was grateful for that.

He'd seen enough useless/screaming children of Venus. At least Piper had some sense, unlike her siblings.

Rubbing his temple, Jason said,"I think the leopard is from an African species, but I don't think it's possible for us to get teleported from Long Island Sound to Africa. Also, this doesn't look like a zoo to me.

Gaia wouldn't have entrusted such power to Glen only, plus she's only half awake, so it would most probably be a god's doing..." He trailed off, unsure of what to say.

For more than once since his mind was wiped, the great roman praetor of the twelve legion was stumped.

"Well, then how about a goddess with such an ability?" a female voice echoed from behind them. Nico swivelled around, just in time to see a twelve year old girl with auburn hair step out from the trees.

There was a silver glow enveloping her body, and Nico was thrown into the past. Bianca, he thought.

"Lady Diana..." Jason said, kneeling. Nico shut his eyes tight, he'd never really seen Artemis after Bianca's death and now, he still found it hard to get over it.

There was a lump in his throat and Nico forced his emotions down, there more important things to deal with now. A goddess visiting them even when Zeus declared Olympus closed?

Things would have been getting really, really bad. Nico didn't know what to do. Whenever he saw the hunters, no one really bowed to Artemis.

Well, he didn't see them a lot... He also didn't know what the Romans did when Diana visited, he didn't stay anywhere for long.

In the end, he decided it would be better if he knelt, since Artemis was already quite temperamental around boys even in her Greek form.

"You may rise, young heroes. I am sorry for bringing you here so abruptly, but it was a matter of great urgency.

But, I could not reach your other companions, they were destined for something else." Diana said.

Nico felt guilty, ever since he'd gotten here, he'd never stopped worrying for himself, he'd totally neglected to notice two of his friends were missing.

"I am sure you have much to ask, but my time here is limited. I do not know whether if you have thought about this before, but, does it trouble you that Glen let you go?

Gaia is easily far more powerful than I am even asleep, she could have easily intercepted me. I fear that something worse is in store for us and the entire race of humanity.

It is a clash of our very heritage. I'm sure you know the Giants are planning to pull up to roots of the gods, which is Mount. Olympus .

She's going to turn everyone against each other, not just demigods. Humans will be after each other, World War III will erupt, religion against religion, race against race, country against country.

The mortal world will never be what it once was ever again. It is never good to mess with fate, but I can safely say, it's not even safe for me here.

Though I do not have any Giants after me as my bane, someone else is coming. Beware my heroes, watch who you trust..." After saying this Diana tensed suddenly.

"I must leave now, a sense a presence. I will do my best to return you, but heed my words, trust no one else until you reach your camp.

Farewell my friends, you have done well." As the last syllable last her lips, a bright flash erupted and Nico averted his eyes.

As the light died down, Nico realised his surroundings were still the same and he had not moved at all. When he turned, he realised Piper and Jason were no longer there.

They were simply gone, like they were nothing more than wisps of smoke blown away by the wind. He reached for his sword and felt temporary relief as his fingers closed around the handle of it.

Nico had no idea how he could get back to camp, and he was beat. He had no idea where he was and shadow travelling may not help.

For he knew, he might be in Malaysia, with the exception of the leopard. It was still staring back at him it's intelligent eyes practically glowing.

It shifted it's head slowly to one direction before walking a few paces. It wanted him to follow it. With no other idea in mind, Nico decided to go with it.

It was one of Diana's animals after all. Just as he was ten metres away from his original position, the small grove surrounded by trees erupted into a bright ball of fire.

Sparks flew everywhere and Nico stood rooted to the spot watching the tongues of fire curl around the tree tops.

Someone was out to kill him.

**Done! Now please do your thing (eg. Review/Favorite/Follow)**

**I'd be overwhelmed with happiness! My syndrome is called the 'Oh, my gods someone reviewed my story' illness. I'm sorry to say I won't be getting better anytime soon.**

**Toodles! And have a blessed new year!**


	26. Chapter XXVI

As promised, I have updated this week! Yay! Lol. School life is hectic, I have tons of homework and a physical assessment coming up in a month. I really have to train cause I am in bad bad shape. I still will update though, once a week. I try my best!

Also, I hope you like this chapter!

Major questions asked by annabeth129345 (Thank You for bothering to ask) :

1) King Minos has returned from Tartarus as a spirit, so technically he can shift shape and still possess the human like quality in him. That's my idea.

2) Yes, I have read the ENTIRE PJO series that is out so far. I'm sorry if I confused you, but Percy and Annabeth aren't in the Labyrinth, Tartarus is a pit that is designed to target your deepest fear(so don't go in there), so after their harrowing experience at the Labyrinth, it has created a replica like it to give Percy and Annabeth a sense of hopelessness like they have once felt.

3) Things happen for a reason and the demigods shouldn't act on impulse. For all we know Zeus might have sent it as a clue or something, so they decided to wait and see what happened. Also, the Laelaps is technically not untrained, he had eons catching it's prey before Zeus got rid of it. So yeah, did I answer your questions? And I really hoped you liked it!

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or HOO, now read it! :D

* * *

**Hazel**

The mud underneath her was loosening, she could feel it. Whatever "things" that were after them were indefinitely getting closer.

The Earth seemed to shift in their favour, growing softer as they approached. She suspected that if she were to burrow into the earth now, it would probably be rock solid, preventing her from escaping.

She wasn't even sure that her powers would help in times like this. Now what? Her hands and feet were bound, and Reyna was no exception.

Glen had already disarmed them and made sure that there were no objects nearby that they could use to free themselves.

Hazel shut her eyes tight, looking for possible sources of refuge from the power her dad had granted her. She couldn't reach Nico, his mind felt like it was mentally blocked.

Up till now, she still hadn't really understood the new 'power' she possessed. So far, she could only communicate with her own brother.

She searched spiritually, visualising the perimeters of camp in her mind. There had to be an armoury somewhere, or a precious metal.

Thousands of years of history were beneath her feet and there was not a single thing she could detect. Suddenly, she felt it.

Ten tonnes of solid Imperial Gold around 10metres north. It was moving towards her, fast. She had no idea whether she was responsible for drawing it or not, but it felt out of her depth.

"Hazel..." Reyna began, but she never got to finish her sentence. The ground exploded beneath her feet and mounds of mud and rock splayed in different directions.

A frothing mist had formed from the impact and out crawled the two creatures.

Two giant scorpions- slightly smaller than the ones camp used for war games- with Imperial Golden armour platings, marched forward, their tails swinging in the air with menace.

Hazel didn't now what to think, how could she have heard the scraping noises they were making from such a distance away?

Two sets of golden yellow eyes loomed over both the girls and then Hazel knew why. The scorpions were emitting a deep growl decibels higher than any living creature could make.

Hazel didn't know how she could hear it, or how the scorpions were doing it, but the sound unnerved her and sent her skin crawling.

Suddenly, one of the scorpions lunged at her, it's tail, a razor sharp barb, aiming towards her. She knew that with its strength, it could impale her with one strike.

She rolled away instinctively, her battle instincts taking charge, all those strenuous training exercises were definitely worth the effort.

While the scorpion was encircling her, the other one hurled rock and mud had Reyna and attempted to stab her in all the chaos.

The rocks and mud piled together seemed to weigh a ton, Reyna could barely stay upright. Hazel herself had to keep moving, dodging the barbed tail carefully aimed to end her life.

"Curses, terra is messing with us!" Reyna said, deftly deflecting the scorpion's blow with a candlestick snatched from a table.

It broke immediately and turned a deep shade of red. Yelping, Reyna dropped the candlestick, prancing out of the way.

It was hard to defend yourself when both your hands and feet were tied. "Don't let the barbs touch you at all!

Once it comes into contact with something, anything, it will inject a deadly micro organic fibre into the victim.

The bacterium will spread through your body if touched and you could die in sixty seconds flat. Securus Hazel, daughter of Pluto!"

She said this with a sort of finality, like before two people parted. Hazel had been so stunned by what she had said that she barely had time to flip out of the way to avoid the barb that came swinging.

The extra info also didn't help with her state of mind as she struggled to come up with a useful plan.

When she was young, she had always fantasied about being the damsel in distress and having a brave and valiant knight to rescue her and sweep her off her feet.

Well, there was no chance of that now, she was just about on her own. She definitely needed a plan or she would be convulsing on the floor before dying after some time.

She couldn't keep this up. The scorpions were probably impossible to beat with their golden armour plating, made from the exact same metal that made her spatha.

All she needed was some gold eating maniac... Gold eating. It was tugging at her mind, an animal. Arion! "Hazel!" she heard.

The scorpions were taking their time now, they knew that both girls would be theirs, sooner or later. This time she heard again, with a sense of extreme urgency.

Reyna gripped an oil lamp tightly, her mouth set in a thin hard line. "You should always find weak links in your enemies armour, should you not?" the older girl said, poised with determination.

Knowing Reyna, Hazel knew she was about to do something drastic, just to save her and camp. Reyna flung the oil lantern and snapped her fingers twice.

A fire roared to life and the flames danced on the oil wick now splattered all over the scorpions body. Hazel knew that the fire wouldn't last, once the oil burned out.

She was too threatened by imminent danger that she didn't have time to fully register what Reyna had done.

Smoke wafted up in the air, choking her. Hazel knew only of the one animal that could save them.

Gathering as much energy as she could, Hazel whistled. Then everything went black and she saw the word Ignis, fire, burned into the sky.

* * *

Now you might be wondering, what's with me and fire? Remember the second great prophecy, the storm or FIRE the world must fall. Wink, wink. I'll be posting next week so review please! I'll be delirious with joy xD.

Latin Dictionary:

Terra: Gaia (Roman Form)

Securus: Stay Safe

Ignis: Fire


	27. Chapter XXVII

**Tada! Also, I would like to say that I might be posting extra chapters if the reviews exceed my expectations. I know it sounds like blackmail, but reviews inspire me to write, and I hope I managed to do well enough for this chapter. Cheers!**

**Disclaimer: I am not thy awesomest Rick Riordan, so I do not Percy Jackson nor any of the awesome dudes from there.**

* * *

**Leo**

Leo stared at the smouldering pile of rotten wood in front of him. Smoke was wafting up into the air and his hands were positively glowing. "Yes, yes. Just a few more minutes..." He murmured under his breath.

The engine would only work if the temperature of it hit 327K* exactly, it was primed in such a way that Leo could blow it up at a moment's notice if he needed to.

But, the down side was that the blast wouldn't be as forceful as it would be if Leo heated it up, slowly. He was working on that right now.

He wasn't sure how he knew it, or maybe it was sort of 'son of Hephaestus' power, but he knew he was close. He ran his plan mentally in his mind again.

Once the engine reached the ideal temperature, the particles inside it would expand really quickly and erupt into flames. It would cause a huge blast which could rocket Leo towards camp, if positioned properly.

Also, it would make a sweet distraction. The bad thing was that the particles would burn out the oxygen fast, so his head start wouldn't last.

As he strapped the wooden 'jetpack' to his back, he almost second guessed himself. I must be crazy, he thought, before securing the straps on to his back, making sure the engine was pointing away from him.

It had occurred to him that the reaction of the particles might be toxic, but he was willing to chance it. It was radioactivity versus certain death with the Romans. Leo picked radioactivity.

Rubbing his palms together in anticipation, he took a deep breath. Casting a backward glance at the shadowy trees nearly a kilometre off behind him, he prayed that the Romans would allow him enough grace period for his plan to work.

Then, Leo heard the sharp crack he was waiting for. An orange flame was forming inside the wooden backpack, and Leo could feel its heat licking his back.

He forced himself to wait to the count of three and set off walking briskly. His body heat was still heating up the engine. "1," he said aloud, Roman shields appearing in the distance.

"2," the fire was crackling and he quickened his pace. Wind whipped his hair back as the number three formed into his lips and broke into a sharp sprint.

The engine flared to life and Leo was exhilarated as he jetted past the fields beyond Zeus' fist, powered by mechanics.

An eagle flew overhead and Leo didn't dare to look up to see if it was Roman or not. All his energy was focused on escaping and making his fire fuelled jet last as long as possible.

Camp was close by, probably around two kilometres across the fields. If he kept up with this speed, he would be back in five minutes.

He would be safe once he reached the borders, provided the Romans didn't try to storm the camp. Hopefully they wouldn't.

Knowing it would be a bad idea, Leo craned his neck and risked a look. Big mistake. A hundred strong Roman legionnaires advanced with uniformed speed towards him.

They were moving, fast. The sudden spasm of shock made Leo lose his concentration and the flames on his engine died down.

Argh! Leo felt like he might convulse with rage, he hated himself for looking back, for that one slip up. He was dead for sure.

Just then, the eagle Leo had seen landed next to him. Instead of landing on the ground, it stopped halfway and morphed into a vaguely humanoid shape.

It was Frank. Without his engine, Leo had to rely on his legs to stay one step ahead of the Romans. "What are you doing here?" Leo sputtered, gasping for breath.

He could he them loud and clear, a hundred pairs of feet trampling the soil beneath them. Shaking his head, Frank replied, "I should ask you the same, but we have to get out of here first."

"Well, I thought that would be obvious..."

Frank huffed, annoyed that he was being scorned at. "I could get us out of here, but I keep having this weird feeling, like something horrible is about to happen."

Leo shuddered. He didn't want to think about it, not after what she'd said. "Yeah, save us. Turn into a dragon or something." He said, sounding more calm than he felt.

Raising his eyebrow, Frank said,"If I turn into a dragon, we would make an easy target in the sky for the Romans to hit. It's too dangerous. I've trained with their archers before, they're good. Just ride on me once I've transformed."

Their archers. He said their archers, Leo though. Maybe he didn't know it, but Frank was surely becoming one of the seven, finally belonging into the group.

That just left him alone, on the outside. You will be the seventh wheel... Nemesis words rang in his head once more. Suddenly, Frank whinnied, jolting him from his thoughts.

Wait a minute... The stocky archer that had once run alongside him was long gone. In his place, a mare, it's skin as dark as night galloped beside him.

Still sprinting, Leo grabbed Frank's... The horse's neck and swung himself upwards. He landed awkwardly on the horse's back. Not good with organic life forms.

The Romans were close behind, swords clanged in the distance and Leo felt jittery hearing them. Then, it hit him. Slinging his wooden backpack off his back, he lit a fireball in his hand.

He held it close to the backpack at high heat. The particles were stirring. Feeling like he had to say it, Leo turned behind and yelled,"Hold on to your horses guys, cause things are about to get hot!"

Then, he lobbed his backpack-a ticking time bomb- at them.

* * *

**Whaddoya think? Now do your thing, review, favourite and follow! Cheese!**

**Plus, I love Cheezels! :)**


	28. Chapter XXVIII

Ive been having a really bad day, so I won't say much, just R&R please!

The House Of Hades.

Chapter 28:

Annabeth

Annabeth couldnt differentiate between reality and fantasy. The dark swirling void of pitch harness gushing below her definitely did not help matters.

On the other side, there was a small wooden hut-presumably the safe house Alabaster was talking about.

"Is that even safe? What if we fall?" Percy sputtered, more hesistant than angry.

"Yes, it is. I have crossed it before." came the confident reply.

But, Annabeth noticed his voice wavered. Something was really wrong here. In the distance, a figure was approaching the bridge in small ragged steps.

Annabeth couldn't make out what it was, but judging from the way Alabaster was cringing, it couldn't be anything good. He nervously fingered the sword at his side, reminding her of Nico even more.

He murmured something to in a,low,voice to Claymore, but all Annabeth could hear were, "No, they couldn't have tracked us so quickly, I..."

Claymore stopped abuptly on seeing Annabeth hoovering over them. He didn't speak again after that and nor did Alabaster. The figure staggered towards them, cupping its face in its hands.

It looked like someone who had a little too many drinks. It appeared to be a mortal of such demeanour, but up close, he was nothing like that at all.

The smell got there before the figure did, the smell of rotting flesh. Then, Annabeth saw it. The body of festering flesh stumbling towards them with calculated steps.

Its skin was sagging and fresh blood was dripping from its mouth. It wore the clothes of a regular mortal and perhaps could have passed for one from afar.

Just then, a wall of darkness, a hellhound leapt out of seemingly nowhere and went straight for the creature.

What happened next, was so sickening, no one should have been made to watch it, but Annabeth did. She stood rooted to the spot, unable to take her eyes of the scene in front of her. Just before the hellhound could strike, the creature acted.

It lashed out with amazing agility and before she could even blink, the creature had already sunk its teeth into the hellhound's body. Greyish blood splayed from the hellhound's body, but still the creature did not move.

It just stood there, it's teeth inside the hellhound, watching it bleed dry. Annabeth didn't understand. Whenever she killed monsters, they had just disintegrated into dust. She had never seen them bleed out before.

The creature did not make a move to go anywhere, it just stood there staring at the small party. Daring them, daring them to cross the bridge.

Suddenly, the once lifeless body of the hellhound twitched on the floor. Then, it let out a high pitched howl, before the vocal cords gave way and sound became a low moan.

The ashen grey skinned hellhound staggered to its feet. It's eyes however, were the same as the creature's. Diluted pupils looking straight at them, but not really seeing.

Beside her, Alabaster dropped limply to the ground. "No, it can't be..." he muttered. "The infection doesn't spread that fast. No one could have attained that level of power, no."

"Infection... The way your saying it is serious, you have to tell us what's going on now! How can we help you if we don't know what we're up against.

What happened just now was not natural." Percy said, his questions mostly directed at Claymore, on seeing the distraught boy.

Glancing warily at the creature on the opposite side, Claymore said,"I'm not expert on the dark arts, but from what I've learned so far, I know that the Infection is a very powerful spell.

No one has ever dared to use it in centuries. It needs so much Power and energy to perform that it might drain one's life force.

That was a small price to pay for mass destruction and eternal life. Yes, I mean eternal life in a way. A long time ago, a boy, the son of Hecate, performed it, thinking he would be able to rule the world forever.

That was naïve thinking. He was instead, turned into something like the creature you see before you. It was eternal life, as the living dead. One bite can kill, one bite can Infect.

The infection will rage over your body, inevitably killing you. You've seen for yourself what happened to the hellhound. It was dead, but it came back to 'life' again.

There was no way to kill such a creature easily, even the gods themselves find it hard to destroy one of those beings. That is why, the Infection has to be contained.

The mortal world has yet to be struck, but when it is, Chaos will ensue. The Infection is contained here for now. You can be sure that it is Gaia's doing." Claymore looked like he had finished talking, but Annabeth suspected he wasn't telling them everything.

Alabaster's mental breakdown did not seem right too. Percy, who hadn't said much was deep in thought. Annabeth knew he wouldn't be the same old Percy again.

Reality had hardened him up to the likes of a Roman.

"Something is wrong, I can feel it. Gaia is growing stronger than ever, we need to stop her. That safe house you were talking about, will it hold, against them?" Percy asked.

"Yes, it will once we get there."

"Good, then let's go, I think I can take of the two over there. We re attracting more monsters standing here waiting." As he turned, the creature smiled sickeningly at him.

With her heart in her mouth, she watched Percy cross the bridge slowly, into the waiting arms of Death.


	29. Chapter XXIX

_**The best type of a story you can find is one filled with so much meaning, yet expressed in the simplest of words. **_

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything as usual, I'd probably get thrown into Tartarus if I said anything else, so there you go**

**Nico**

**Piercing screams in the distance, which was all he could hear. **The smoke that filled his lungs was threatening to choke him, but he forced himself forward.

He knew he had to get out of this place, fast. His thoughts were all jumbled up and his hands were shaking. A sudden peal of laughter jolted him out of his trance.

It was sadistic like, somehow in the way which a lunatic may laugh. He was the son of Hades, should he not be used the craziness already?

The answer was obviously no. He also didn't appreciate someone laughing at the face of his probable death.

Nico felt weak, definitely not strong enough to shadow travel back to camp. He could barely run, much less use his powers.

In the days since he was rescued, he found that he could somehow feel how Hazel was feeling, and could share her emotions.

Some kind of gift for children of Pluto or Hades? He didn't know. But now, when he couldn't 'feel' Hazel, he felt empty and he feared the worse. He was not prepared to lose another one of his sisters'.

Diana or whatever form she decided to take, had just appeared, brought them into the middle of a forest, said a few words, then 'poof', she was gone, taking Piper and Jason with her.

Upfront, Nico would never admit that he was scared, but the thought of the other demigods nearby calmed his paranoia.

His days in Tartarus were definitely affecting him badly, he wondered how well Percy and Annabeth were coping.

It was impossible not to think of them at a time like this. Percy, with all his bravado, would be able to quench the fire with a flick of his wrist or whatever else he could do with his water controlling power.

It was reassuring for him to think of them, because he could safely tell himself that whatever he was going through now, the pair had been through much worse.

Nico heard the laughter again, it was louder and much clearer this time, like whoever was making it was hurtling towards him. He felt like screaming.

The eerie laughter reminded him of someone else completely. Wasn't being a child of Hades bad enough?

He was already shunned wherever he went, but no, bad luck often came in excess for people like him.

To top it all off, he had that prophecy looming over his head, recited by the mother of all things evil herself.

For a while, he might have actually liked it, finally something that revolved around him. But the price paid was too dear.

He still could hear Gaia's sleepy voice in his head, reciting the awful chant:

_Son of Pluto, whom darkness looms,_

_Shall one day meet the Death's groom_

_He who finds it will not survive,_

_And that will happen shall time be right_

_The path that glistens in the distance_

_Might not always be for your assistance_

_Fear thee and travel strong,_

_Through the deaths of an endless throng._

The Fates, Gaia or whatever godly being that came up with the prophecy could not have made it more simple.

It was like getting handed a card that says: You will die! Chiron had often told him that prophecies had double meanings, but the word 'death' was already repeated twice, how could anything go wrong?

Nico feared that he might have to face all of it, alone. Only him, the _son of Pluto_, was mentioned in it.

Nico didn't have time to ponder anymore about the prophecy, something was approaching him. He got into a defensive stance and walked on briskly.

He could see a single lone shadow in the distance heading towards him. No sudden movements, he told himself, his hand still on the handle of his sword.

He was on full alert. You don't normally see mortals walking around in deep forests in the dead of the night. What you get are usually monsters or crazed gods.

Nico had no idea _why _he was moving forward, if he had any sense, he would have already made a run for the trees beside him and stray away from the creepy figure.

But, he didn't. His feet seemed to have a mind of its own and it led him towards that figure. The ground was getting steeper and it inclined sharply upwards, like a hill.

He had a naïve hope. A hope that the figure might be Leo waiting for him and just over the hill, camp-with its bright lights- would be waiting for him.

That would never happen. The figure was waiting for him at the top of the hill. As he got closer, he realized it was a young girl, around eight.

He still didn't slacken his grip on his sword. Appearances didn't fool him anymore. As he approached, the girl turned to face him.

The sight that met his eyes shocked him and he let his grip fall away.

The girl had no eyes. In the place where her eyes should have been were two slits, slashed across like scars.

Even without eyes, she seemed to have sense his arrival for she held out both arms and whispered, "Welcome master, we have much awaited for your arrival back home.

We knew you would return eventually, to reunite with the others. Come with. It is quite late and some do not wish to be disturbed."

Nico tried not to let the shock register on his face as he stepped up. He finally got the full view of the place.

Downhill, a mansion-painted black –was surrounded by a vast expanse of land and with no other form of civilization nearby. It was completely standing on its own.

Taking Nico's hand, the girl led him down the hill, towards the main gate. There was a slow groan as cast iron gate creaked open and the girl pulled him inside.

A large double door stared down at him ominously and the brass doorknocker hung there, polished.

The girl stepped up a rapped the door three times each in a different spot and Nico watched awed as the doors swung open by itself.

There was an ear piercing howl heard as the door opened and the girl neatly pushed him inside.

Showing her unnaturally pointed teeth, the girl grinned and cackled, "Oh, I can't imagine all the fun we will have together and wait till you meet Rupert! We'll have so much fun torturing the mortals!"

Nico felt the last shred of hope inside of him wilt as the door closed. There was no getting out now.

**Nico is definitely more cynical in this chapter don't you think? He'll be on his own, for now. Fate is done playing with him just yet. **

**There's going to be action in this story from now on. Enough staying at Camp Half Blood already, go to Greece! **

**I've a lot of comments like that and I'm going to do that. It needs to build up first. **

**I'll give a little hint, what the Seven might imagine to be so far is actually just a step away from them. **

**What they do may or may not be a wild goose chase. But the challenges will not be easy to face… *Evil music plays***

**Now, please go and review, you will boost my spirits!**


	30. Chapter XXX

**You can see that I haven't posted in a week, I'm sorry about that, but my school life is getting hectic and I don't think I can really do a HoH fanfic to as long as I planned for it to be anymore. I will end this story, but in a complete ending, I won't leave you hanging there. :)**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing**

* * *

_WARNING. LEO HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY GAIA SO HIS THOUGHT RE MORE SELFISH._

Leo felt fine. Really, he felt as though he had never been better.

In fact, he . Frank, on the other hand, seemed out if breath.

"That was two hundred Romans and, you, you just flicked a DEADLY explosive at them without batting an eyelid.

Yeah, they might be attacking us now, but you have no excuse!" Frank was visibly shaking now, his less jerking up and down.

He seemed extreme, although if it was to the point of utter despair or fury, Leo would never know.

What he didn't get to tell Frank was that the bomb wasn't deadly.

Just a little bit of fire mixed with a lot if smoke. He couldn't get a word in, Frank was so spooked, he speaking in gibberish.

"...And it just exploded, right there on their faces. It was an explosion! I..." Leo tuned it after that, Frank was getting on his nerves.

He wasn't sure he liked Frank now, he was getting irritating. Leo wondered why Hazel picked him.

He was sure that he was much better than him. Leo shook his head. Why was he thinking like this?

Frank had just saved him from the Romans even though he also was one.

Frank did not seem to sudden quiet demeanor. He was still ranting on and on.

The familiar dislike crept up him, thinking with disgust at his childish behavior.

Leo dint know where they were, he was surrounded with a thick blanket of smoky greenish fog.

It looked like it came just out of a movie.

Long green fingers stretched out from the fog, spaceless hands trying to entwined themselves around him.

Frank didn't see what was going on, he was still muttering to himself. Annoyance grew in him yet again.

Suddenly, the visualization of the fog disappeared. They were back at Zeus fist standing in the cheerful sunshine. Something was wrong.

The cheerfulness seemed false, like it was fabricated by force to hide what was underneath.

What reality was so harsh it was forced to be hidden. A cow mooed in thwarting distance.

The subtle sound brought Leo to his senses. This was warning, given by her most proud highness herself.

Hera didn't play around. This was something more big than he had ever imagined.

Immediately, the sunshine vanished and he was enveloped in the thick fog once more.

This time, there was a sliver of protective magical energy around him. He could feel it.

Frank was gone, just lost in the green fog, he could see the vague shadow of someone standing- no kneeling- on the ground in the distance.

As if sensing his presence, the person stood up. It turned towards him and advanced slowly.

Green hair as dark and as transparent as the fog. It was the first detail that sent a trail of goosebumps down his arms.

He was sure no mortal or demigod would visit him now, even the Romans wouldn't be that stupid.

So it was either a. A crazy schizophrenic god or b. A bloodthirsty monster wanting to kill him.

"Greetings hero, my mistress bids me to have a talk with you..." came a deep voice.

Okay, it definitely wasn't Frank or a god, so that leaves...

"Come with." It wasn't an invitation, it was an order.

Leo felt himself getting pulled to the figure.

"We must talk, Gaia hasn't given me much time for an answer so we must skip the hospitalities.

I'll get straight to the point: Are you and your friends going to go all out to defy Gaia?

You know in your heart that death is the only path left if you choose that. Let me offer you something.

Haven't you found that your friends don't need you? Do they even appreciate you?

Join us, Gaia will make sure you are important. Weren't you always the extra part in the Seven?

Here is your chance to prove your friends wrong-" At this point, the figure gestured to the mansion behind him.

Leo felt stunned, wasn't he at Zeus Fist a moment ago?

"You know where to find me if you decide to join us, I can see you cannot choose.

You have an hour to consider, before the invasion starts, that is the most we can give.

But be warned, bring or tell no one or they will perish. A terrible death. "

Then, the green fog swirled and disappeared, sucking the figure inside.

Leo was lying on the ground at the bottom of Zeus Fist. He was feeling queasy, none of it was a dream.

He sat up saying,"Frank, I..." He stopped short. Frank was no longer there.

On the rock, a tiny stamp was engraved on it. A skull and an archers' bow.

Leo knew what had happened, two of them was already taken. While another two was down in Tartarus.

There were only four more active quest members on Earth now.

He regretted arguing with Frank now, Gaia was getting to him. Really?

Of all the seven, Gaia wanted him? He must be worth something then...

Suddenly, a small dimming glow appeared beside him and two people appeared, holding on to each other.

They seemed frozen and for a millisecond, Leo saw two stamps above them.

A sign from Gaia, was she hinting what might happen to them? Then, the pair unfroze and Leo found himself face to face with Jason and Piper.

"We're back?" Jason said with disbelief. "But where's Nico and why do you look so green?"

Leo felt sick to his stomach, he already knew where Nico and Frank were.

Fearing for the two of them, he just shook his head.

"We just met Artemis," Piper explained. "and we need to get to the house of hades fast and find the rest, before its too late."

"Leave the finding of the house of hades to me, you guys just work on finding Hazel, I think she was separated from us, but I know she's around here somewhere."

"Um.. Okay, we'll meet back at camp in two hours, if neither of us is there then we'll... just find some way to communicate and hope no one is killed."

Leo sent the two away as fast as possible, he needed to think.

What he was about to do wasn't for himself, but for the sake of his friends.

He didn't want to see them dead. "If we didn't look blindly, we might have seen the entrance earlier.

Hidden in plain sight." Leo thought aloud, his head in his hands.

_Review please?_


	31. Chapter XXXI

_**Woohoo, I made it to Chapter 31! I didn't think I could at first, but thank you to everyone who reviewed! It's made my day!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters here, except for Glen, did you forget her?**_

Q&A

Vale: I'm so sorry about the spelling and grammatical errors, I will look into them. Please tell me about it if you see an excessive amount appearing again. I tend not to look where I type.

John: I will post, just that I'm busy with school, tests and projects, it's sometimes hard to come up with _anything _when I'm stressed.

Vidhi: Yep, I'm posting now.

Guest: Thanks!

Pnk: Glad you liked it ;D

Foreverluv13: I'm so sorry for not replying you earlier, I kept forgetting to post my replies into my stories. I tend to get really excited once I finish a chapter and forget all else. Heheh. Forgive me please.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO oOoO

**Annabeth**

**Annabeth's heart was in her mouth as she watched.** Each foot he took forward seemed to take a million years.

She couldn't stand the creepy and ghoulish look on the creature's face either. If she had her knife right now, she wouldn't have any qualms about ramming it straight into its face.

With his sword in hand, Percy was advancing steadily through the bridge, never once stopping to hesitate.

The so called _bridge_ seemed rather unsteady to Annabeth, for all she knew, it could be made out of balsawood and this whole thing was a trap.

She wished she could share Percy's confidence, she never felt as secure as she did in the past. Also, watching your boyfriend walk to his death was definitely not on her to-do list.

The creature had its arms outstretched, in a welcoming gesture, and the hellhound seemed to be suddenly excited, howling with either hunger or delight, she didn't know.

But, she was definitely sure that this animal was nothing like Mrs. O'leary and licks were not the only thing Percy was bound to receive.

"Don't worry, I can handle this…"

That was what he had said before embarking on his dangerous journey. It was also the same thing he has said the night before he disappeared.

Annabeth didn't want to lose him again, she didn't think she could handle it. She has already lost her knife, so attacking it was definitely not an option.

Also, she was in no position to defend either herself or Percy, the condition she was in would only worsen the situation.

What's more, her ankle had decided to take this opportune moment to flare up again, great. All she needed was a little fairy dust and some pumpkins, then everything would be all better.

She could be the desperate-girlfriend-throwing-pumpkins kind of demigod if that made any sense.

Annabeth was sure it didn't, the zombies, monsters, whatever-things-they-were would probably fall over laughing.

In her sheer desperation, she slid a hand into the pocket of her jeans, knowing exactly what she would find there.

More for her sake than Percy's, she took it out to examine. It gave her something to do, something to focus her now ADHD brain on.

Annabeth was just curling her palm around it, when suddenly, Alabaster broke the silence. "Where did you get that from?" the sixteen year old asked, recovering from his present state.

"That kind of rock is sacred to Pluto. I've only ever seen it in books before. There's a legend that whoever finds it, and whoever is smart enough to use it, is the one that Pluto deems worthy. Many people can walk past it searching for the same thing without seeing it at all."

_Really? This piece of obsidian is scared to Pluto? _

"I think you're mistaken," Annabeth said. "While I was running away from Lamia and the mutts, I scooped it up from the forest floor, there were tonnes of it around, how can it be scared to Pluto? Also, I don't think he ever liked me."

"Here, let me see."

Annabeth passed the stone gingerly across, if it was really scared to Pluto, it might be the only thing that could save them.

She looked back nervously at the bridge; Percy was almost half-way across.

Their initial plan was for Percy to either distract or kill the monster to give everyone some time to reach the hut, but Annabeth didn't think it would turn out that way anymore.

"Yes! I was right, this _is _Pluto's rock, and you can see his insignia there! Also, I don't think you've ever met Pluto before; he's Roman while you're Greek, there's a difference you know?"

Annabeth didn't like being lectured, she knew more than the average demigod. Of course Pluto and Hades were different, but the problem was how much.

Sighing, she said, "Well, if you say so… but what can it do? There's no use having a rock for decoration…"

"It's not for decoration! Listen, Every hundred years, there's bound to be this big war cropping up and Pluto sends this rock, his blessing, to the hero he deems worthy.

Only when they can unlock the power of it, will they be free of their burden, but like all things, it comes with a price. It is said in the ancient times that this emblem can ward off death itself. Imagine if you could master it, you would be invincible!"

Alabaster was clearly going over the edge. Annabeth had never heard of Pluto's rock before and could see no insignia on it.

Percy was almost across the yawing chasm now, his grip on his sword tighter than ever. Suddenly, a memory pounced on her. It was back when Luke was still alive and Artemis was holding the sky.

She had seen Percy, Thalia and Zoë moving past Ladon, the dragon that guarded that guarded the golden apple tree. It was trained never to leave what it was guarding.

There must be something of importance behind the creature, but all Annabeth could see was an empty field and the hut. Alabaster had told them that they would be safe once they had gotten there, which means…

Alabaster glanced nervously at Annabeth, like he knew she had already put two and two together. She had already seen what the creature had done, and she didn't want to see it happening to Percy. She wasn't prepared to lose him again.

"Mother, help me." She whispered before yanking the obsidian stone out of Alabaster's hand and flinging it towards the creature.

You would have thought that it wouldn't have made it over the huge chasm, but it did and it hit the creature straight in the eye.

Annabeth had expected a bright golden flash and the creature disintegrating into dust, but nothing happened. She looked back and forth between Percy and Alabaster hopelessly.

"Wait," Alabaster said grimly. "It will work."

_**So? Review please and tell me what you think, also if you spot any spelling errors, please notify me, I'll try to correct them, more next week! **___


	32. Chapter XXXII

_**Well, I am sorry about the late updating, but I had to revise for my exams. This chapter is mostly more of explanations and Reyna will be tad OOC. **_

_**She's pouring her heart out; the explanation will make sense later on. Remember the zombie Percy saw? *Hint, Hint* **_

_**Anyway it's late and I have to go now. Also I have received a few unpleasant reviews and it is rather hurtful. **_

_**I'd like to say if you don't like to read what I write then please, don't. I've spent hours and hours on this and it really hurts. I appreciate constructive criticism, but mean stuff is really horrible. **_

_**I'm not trying to scold anyone or something here, but I mean how would you feel if something like that happened to you?**_

_**Anyway, I don't own the characters, Rick Riordan does. (:**_

_**I hope you enjoy this one.**_

**Hazel**

**Hazel awoke to the sound of Arion whinnying. **He was chewing on the battered remains of a golden breastplate contentedly, only stopping for a moment on seeing Hazel awaken.

She was lying on a rough canvas bed, wrapped in cloth bandages. She felt like her mind was spliced apart by some brain surgeon who didn't put back the pieces to where they were, her thoughts were all jumbled up.

When she tried to sit up, Hazel's head spun, the tents around her going out of focus. A hand put out steadied her. "Easy there, you wouldn't want to reopen those wounds, it won't be pleasant." Reyna said gently, her usual hard gaze amiss.

Reyna seemed fine, not even a scratch on her, no remnants of the battle. Once the connection was made, everything came rushing back to her, the scorpions and Glen's betrayal.

"What are you doing here? You should be going after Octavian and the rest of your legion, you can't let them destroy the Greeks!" Hazel squeaked, her anxiety surfacing.

"I could not leave you here, especially not in your state; the elements of nature would have killed you unattended." Hazel felt guilty.

Not only had she signed the death warrant for both the Romans and the Greeks, she had also bound Reyna to her aid.

The Romans might not believe her again, Octavian would be quick to see to that. She had deprived Reyna her last chance to wipe the slate clean.

"Do not despair daughter of Pluto, it is not your fault alone. I, also should atone for my mistakes…" Reyna stared at her hands warily, flexing her fingers. Hazel knew that it was not a dream; Reyna had indeed summoned fire during the battle.

"I know what you are thinking, but there is much to explain. It has much to do with my heritage and my ancestry. As you know, my mother, Bellona, is the Roman goddess of war.

But, unbeknownst to most, she also has another title, and that is the Flame. She is the light to those harrowed and broken by war; she can bring them back from the teetering edge of madness.

She is the path back to sanity. Thus, whenever she has children, they are more special than most. Yes, they have a better understanding and adaptation to weapons, but they also possess a spark of energy inside of them.

That was how Circe had found my sister, Hylla and me. She saw that power. We were taught, during our time at the spa how to practice the arts of sorcery.

Hylla had strongly objected to my learning of it. I didn't understand why at first, but the consequences were dear. One day, I had snuck out when Hylla was on duty with my _friend. _

I was excited by what I could do, to be able to control the elements within my fingertips. I wanted to do it again, despite what Hylla had said. I was doing a forecasting spell, bending the weather.

As soon as the sparks left my fingertips, she crumpled to the ground, convulsing on the floor. Circe found me soon after, she didn't even seem surprised by the fact.

She just ordered her to be taken away. As the guards scooped her off the floor, her irises had already turned purple…

I knew she was gone from that moment, Circe's training had taught me that. I understood Hylla's reasoning then and I never told anyone after that, refused to even practice.

How would I know that someone over the far side of the world would die because of my selfishness?"

Reyna seemed to have paled a little, but she seemed more human than usual. Hazel suspected that Reyna had kept it to herself for too long and had caused her to be too tense.

No wonder she was praetor. Hazel knew from experience that keeping secrets to yourself- long term wise- was not good for your health.

She was secretly glad that she had Frank's support. She also felt sorry for Reyna in a way, she had already lost Jason and now had to deal with this.

Unsure of what to say, Hazel tentatively put her hand on Reyna's shoulder. She didn't pull away. Hazel understood that feeling when you needed someone to lean on to support you.

She had never been really close with Reyna, but now it was as if they had been friends for years. "Well, at least I'm not purple eyed."

It was a terrible joke cracked at the girl's expense. She hoped that Reyna didn't make the connection and feel bad all over again.

Even so, thinking about it now, she doubted Reyna even killed her friend. She was the daughter of Pluto and had never heard of anyone dying from that, only cases which sorcery caused the soul to leave the body.

It might have seemed impossible, but it was actually an easy feat. The soul would leave its living body, but technically, it was still alive, but needing neither food, water or air to survive. It actually was what humans deemed as zombies, neither dead nor alive.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard, the paces jarring into the peaceful silence. Reyna tensed her back going up ramrod straight.

She was no longer the normal teenage girl Hazel had once seen, she was back in full Roman form. In a way, Hazel was glad.

She couldn't have the praetor she had looked up to break down. With her fists clenched, Reyna muttered under her breath, "We should move and hide in somewhere more obscure. Out here, we are as good as…"

"… sitting ducks." Jason completed, skidding to a halt beside her.

Piper followed close behind, her brow furrowed like she was still trying to decide whether to trust Reyna.

Hazel could feel the three way awkwardness between them, the atmosphere tensing up. Jason- also a great praetor of the twelfth legion -had unwittingly shot his mouth off, again.

Had they been in the senate, Octavian would never have let him forget it.

"We came to get you, Hazel. Leo asked us to find you and then stay at camp while it is safe. I think he is going off on a dangerous mission to save us!" Jason said brightly, as though he couldn't see what was happening around him.

"But," Hazel said. "why would Leo do that? Also, if you think Leo was about to risk his life, why didn't you stop him or help him? That's what friends are for right?"

"I… yeah, you're right. Why didn't we stop him?" Jason trailed off perturbed.

Suddenly, Piper lurched forward, her hand on her knife. "No… It can't be true…" she whispered, unsheathing her blade. Images flashed wildly on it, but all Hazel managed to grasp was one of which Leo lay on the ground, his eyes milky white.

"We have to find him, now." Hazel gasped, fear pulsing through her veins. She couldn't let this happen, not to anyone. Reyna was silently observing the scene unfold before her and Hazel barely noticed she was still there.

Tilting her head back slightly, Reyna said, "Allow me to interrupt, but I have a plan. If your blade really shows the truth, then I have much to fear as well.

The seven of you may well be our last hope, without you, the prophecy will be incomplete and we would have lost out last chance.

I worry for my camp as much as you all do for the Greeks. Before everyone rushes off, you need weapons or something on your side, yes?

You know that no sword, knife or spear can protect you from the wretches of _terra_, so I would suggest you make use of what you have."

"Which is…?" Piper said uncomfortably, unsure of Reyna's possible attempt to help the Greeks.

"Well, for a start that would be the Athena _Parthenos_ you have acquired. Items of power retrieved are worth being used." Reyna said a touch lighter than the previous, almost to the hint of suggesting something mischievous. "You need a compass to use a map."

_**I'll try to post again next week and please review! It makes my day! C:**_


	33. Chapter XXXIII

**Nothing could justify how bad Leo's day was, **the Romans had attacked, Frank and Nico were kidnapped and Gaia decided that she wanted Leo to be the bait, great. The House of Hades should be underground at Epirus, not here, in the middle of Long Island. The Giants had said that they would pull up the ancient roots of the gods and render them incapable of anything, so they should go to Greece. Maybe he could convince the Giants to leave camp alone if Gaia thought so highly of him. Right, maybe. Leo was afraid, more than anything right now. He was afraid for his friends' safety, he was afraid for himself, he was afraid that no one would survive the aftermath of Gaia. He touched his finger lightly on to the rock, feeling the power course underneath. It was here. He could sense something _bad _was lurking beneath, just like Coach Hedge could. Maybe he was part satyr. Nah, he never could be. Not good with organic life forms, remember? Leo rested his head onto the cold rock, feeling it dissolve from underneath it him. It was time.

**THE END**

_I know I haven't posted in ages and this is an abrupt ending, but I honestly have no time to write any further, so I'm sorry for keeping you waiting. I will still write in the future, so I do hope I see you guys again. Thank you for following through and reviewing this story 3_

_Lycii _


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